Dances with Princes
by Ultimate Queen of Cliffies
Summary: Meet Fiyero Tiggular - the most annoying and obnoxious person ever in existence... according to Elphaba Thropp, anyway. But as she gets to know him, she learns there is more to him than she could ever have guessed. Shiz-era and, of course, Fiyeraba all the way.
1. The height of annoyance

**AN: So here it is - the first chapter of my new Wicked fic _Dances with princes_! :D**

**This story is dedicated to Elizabeth, because she is the most amazing, sweet, understanding, and altogether completely wonderful person and twin sister on this planet; because it will be her birthday soon; and because I am so happy that she'll (hopefully) finally have time again (for now, at least) to follow and review my stories. I've really missed you and I love you! 3**

**Hope you all like it, and reviews make me happy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 1. The height of annoyance**

"How can you like him?" Elphaba demanded. "He must be the most impossible, obnoxious, annoying… _jerk _I've ever met in my life!"

Galinda calmly continued to brush her shiny, blonde hair as she replied. "He's not obnoxious, Elphie. A little spoilt, maybe… but aren't we all?" She shrugged lightly. "I thought he was pretty cute."

Elphaba snorted. "You just liked the way certain parts of his anatomy looked in those white trousers he was wearing," she muttered, before adding sarcastically, "Those _way _too tight trousers, if you ask me."

"Elphie!" Galinda flushed and turned around. "You can't talk about those things like that!"

Elphaba quirked an eyebrow. "What? Don't bother denying it, Galinda. You've been ogling his backside every time he turned around."

Galinda let out a nervous giggle. "Oh, you just meant his backside! I mean… I thought you were talking about…" She cleared her throat nervously. "Anyway… alright, yes, so maybe I just liked him because he is handsome and charming."

"There you go." Elphaba closed the book she was reading and peered at her blonde roommate over her reading glasses. "So it's not really a relationship with substance, then, is it?"

"Substance?" Galinda shook her head, another giggle escaping her. "Oh, Elphie, sometimes you can be so funny! Of course there's no _substance_!" She pursed her lips at her reflection in the mirror and applied some lipstick as she spoke. "It's not even a real relationship. We danced last night, we kissed last night, and that was all. We're not a couple, or anything." She sniffed. "And besides… even last night, when his attention was supposed to be all mine, he kept on staring at you and trying to get you to talk to him."

"By making rude remarks, teasing me about my hat and calling me vegetable names," Elphaba retorted. "Gee, isn't he a nice guy."

Galinda stuck out her tongue. "You just need to take the time and effort to get to know him, Elphie." She curled her eyelashes and applied some mascara to them. "Who knows? Maybe you'll like him. Oz knows you could use another friend."

Elphaba just crossed her arms and huffed. "I'm fine by myself, thank you very much."

The blonde shook her head sympathetically. "Oh, Elphie," she said. "Everyone needs friends."

Elphaba shrugged. "I have you."

"Friends, Elphie. That's plural."

"I'm surprised you even know what 'plural' means." Elphaba grabbed her bag and swung it over her shoulder. "And besides, I also have Nessa, and Boq… I have plenty of friends. Are you done?" she changed the subject. "It's almost time for class."

Galinda looked irritated. "No, I am not done!" she protested. "I still need to pick out the right shoes to go with this outfit, I need to apply some more blush and mascara, and I need to straighten my hair and throw in some hairspray in order to make sure it stays perfect all day… I'm not even nearly ready! Besides," she added as she picked up her hair straightener, casting a glance in her green roommate's direction, "I still don't understand why you feel the need to always be everywhere at least fifteen minutes early. What's wrong with showing up at the last minute?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes, not answering that. "I'll see you in class, then." She gave a quick wave and disappeared out of the room, leaving the dormitories and walking across campus to the low, stone building where she had her next class.

As always, she sat down in the front, watching the other students as they trickled in. Pfannee and Milla were giggling about something as they entered, taking a seat way in the back of the classroom in order to be able to do other things while the professor was teaching – like paint their nails, or gossip about the cutest boys on campus. Avaric soon joined them, boasting about his ability to charm a girl. Shenshen, who usually sat with them, clearly couldn't be bothered to come to class today.

The professor nodded at Elphaba as he came in, and she returned the nod, her notebook and pencil already in front of her. This was the part she enjoyed most about going to college – the lectures, always taking notes and learning new things, studying until her head was reeling and her vision was blurring. Ever eager to know as much as possible about a subject, Elphaba Thropp could never get enough of learning.

Galinda did not show up for the lecture, which did not really surprise the green girl – knowing her roommate, she would most likely take at least another hour to do her hair and 'perfectify' her looks before venturing out into the world. She didn't expect the blonde to show up until their next class of the day.

What _did _surprise her, however, was that Fiyero Tiggular entered the classroom, about ten clock-ticks before the lecture was supposed to start. He cast a quick glance around the room, ignored Avaric's enthusiastic waves and Pfannee and Milla's equally enthusiastic squeals, and walked over to where Elphaba was sitting.

He slipped into the seat next to her, comfortably dropping his arm around the back of her chair.

"Hey."

She did not let her surprise show as she briefly looked up, eyed him up and down, then focused on her notes again. "Hello, Fiyero."

He whistled between his teeth. "Wow. That must be the coldest greeting a girl has ever given me."

"That doesn't really surprise me," she said, not looking up from her notebook, "given the fact that every female student on campus swoons at your feet the moment you so much as blink at them. But then again, I don't suppose you've called all those girls 'artichoke' and 'asparagus', have you?"

His cheerful grin faded and his face turned solemn. "Yeah… sorry about that," he said apologetically. He sounded sincere, too.

She wasn't sure what she could say to that – she had expected him to tease her further or make another snarky remark, not _apologise_, of all things; but thankfully, she was saved from answering by the professor, who announced that he was going to start today's lesson.

She bent over her notes again, but she could feel Fiyero's eyes burning in the side of her head as he kept on looking at her, clearly not paying any attention to what the professor was saying – let alone taking notes.

"Shouldn't you be writing something down?" she asked him irritably after half a minute or so, still not looking up from what she was doing.

"Well, excuse me," he said, pretending to be offended. "What makes you think I can't pass this class without ever taking notes?" He tossed his head, mimicking Galinda. "Maybe I'm smarter than you seem to think, Miss Elphaba."

He was talking just a little too loudly and the professor looked up, disturbed.

"Master Fiyero?" he said in a tone of voice that was almost bored. "Is there something you'd like to share with us?"

Fiyero laughed a bit nervously. "No, no," he said, holding out both hands. "I'm good."

"Very well." The professor sighed and gave the boy another long, searing look before continuing with the lecture.

The Vinkun prince managed to stay still and silent for two entire minutes – two whole minutes filled with peace and quiet – before he started bouncing his leg, his foot hitting Elphaba's calf every time he did so.

She gritted her teeth and tried to control her annoyance.

She lasted the better part of a minute before she turned to him, eyes flaming, and snapped, "Do you have a problem?"

He looked at her with a dazed expression on his face. "What? No." He shook his head. "Why would I have a problem?"

She just glared at him until he shrank back in his seat, slumping and putting his elbow on the table so that he could rest his cheek in the palm of his hand.

"This is so boring," he complained after a while.

Elphaba ignored him.

He nudged her with his elbow. "Galinda is not here and I'm the only one trying to be nice to you," he informed her. "You might want to be nice to me in return."

"Why in Oz would I want that?" she asked, her pencil still flying over the pages in order to note down everything the professor was saying.

He frowned. "If you don't want to be friends, you could have just said so," he said.

She sighed impatiently. "I thought I had made that pretty clear," she said, her brow furrowed, "but apparently, you're very bad at reading between the lines, so I'll spell it out for you." She poked him with her pencil, her eyes only flicking up to his face for the briefest moment before falling back to her notebook again. "I don't want to be friends."

He grinned that horrible, infuriating grin of his. "I think you're lying."

"I think you should shut up."

He rubbed his foot against hers. "Aw, come on, Elphaba. Indulge me."

She pulled her foot away. "Why would I do that?"

"Because you like me."

"In your dreams."

"I didn't say _like _me like me. I just stated that you like me. As a friend."

"No, I don't."

"I think you could use another friend."

"I think you could use a muzzle, given the fact that you don't seem to be able to shut up."

"Technically," Fiyero pointed out, "a muzzle is used to keep an animal from biting, not to keep it from making noises. I don't bite."

She sighed. "Right."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Unless you want me to."

Elphaba was just about ready to explode when the professor suddenly said irritably, "Master Fiyero and Miss Elphaba, this is your final warning. Another word and you will be removed from class."

Elphaba's eyes widened. "_What_?!" She looked at the professor imploringly. "Doctor Gaeryevel, I swear, I was trying to pay attention, but –"

"It was my fault, sir," Fiyero interrupted her swiftly, giving the professor his most charming smile. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

The man eyed them both suspiciously for a few moments before finally nodding. "One more word, Master Tiggular," he warned the boy, "and you're out. Miss Elphaba, if you want to keep your perfect presence record, I suggest you keep quiet as well."

Elphaba nodded vigorously and Fiyero just leant farther back in his seat, crossing his arms.

"You're welcome," he whispered when she didn't say anything.

She penned down another note. "Shh."

"I could still betray you, you know."

Her eyes snapped up to meet his. "Betray me?" she demanded in a furious whisper. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

He brought his finger up to his lips in an exaggerated gesture. "Shh," he reprimanded her. "Didn't you hear the professor? Another word and he's going to kick you out!"

She pressed her lips together.

Fiyero smirked. "And what did I hear just now?" he whispered to her. "You have a perfect presence record?"

She wrote down something else. "All throughout primary and high school, and for the past four months since the school year started, yes." She looked up at him through her eyelashes. "My goal is to maintain said perfect presence throughout my entire college career, so if you would just shut up and leave me be, that would be very much appreciated."

"Very well." He leant back in his seat, folding his arms behind his head.

She caught the smirk on his face and glared at him. "What?"

"Nothing." He sniggered. "Just… the fact that your goal in college is to maintain a perfect presence record." He shook his head, still smirking. "Unbelievable. You're young, Elphaba. You're supposed to have fun in college, not act like the professors themselves, all boring and responsible and stuff." He shook his head again in mock pity. "What are you, sixty?"

She was boiling with rage by now, but she didn't say anything else. Instead, she just returned to her notes and hoped Fiyero would indeed shut up and let her pay attention for the remainder of the lesson.

* * *

"Elphie!" a voice called from across the courtyard. She looked up. When she saw who was running towards her, waving at her with one hand, she quickened her pace. He was the last person she wanted to talk to.

"Elphie, wait up!" He eventually caught up with her, panting slightly as he tried to catch his breath. "Whoa. You walk fast."

"Yes," she agreed. "That's usually what people do when they are trying to avoid other people."

He frowned. "You're trying to avoid someone?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes. Sometimes she wasn't sure if he was only pretending to be stupid in order to agitate her, or if he was really as dense as he acted sometimes.

"Hey." He looped his arm through hers and grinned at her. "I was joking."

She shook him off, crossing her arms to prevent him from taking a hold of her arm again.

"Elphie, come on," he pleaded, looking at her with large puppy-eyes. "Why are you avoiding me?"

She glared at him. "First: stop looking at me like that," she ordered irritably.

He dropped the puppy look, quickly pulling his face back into a normal expression. "Elphie –"

"Second: don't _ever _call me that. Galinda calling me 'Elphie' is bad enough, but she's allowed because she's my best friend. You, on the other hand, are not."

He frowned. "Then what am I supposed to call you?" he wanted to know. He started thinking out loud. "I could call you 'Phaba, maybe. Or El. Or –"

"You may call me," she said prickly, "Miss Elphaba."

He pouted. "Well, you're no fun."

"No," she agreed crossly. "I'm just a boring sixty-year-old, after all."

Fiyero grinned. "I was just teasing you, you know."

She sighed exaggeratedly. "What do you _want _from me, Fiyero?"

"Nothing," he said, suddenly serious. "Hey." He stopped her by taking her arm – not in an obtrusive way, like he had before; it was merely a gentle gesture in an attempt to draw her attention.

She stopped and looked at him.

"I don't want anything from you," he said, and she could read the sincerity in his eyes. "All I want is to be your friend."

She opened her mouth to reply, but he was quicker.

"You don't need a friend," he nodded. "I know. You said that. But maybe _I _do."

She closed her mouth and blinked.

"I'm new here," he reminded her. "I only arrived yesterday. The only friends I have so far are Galinda and Avaric." He said it in such a pathetic tone of voice – and with a matching facial expression – that Elphaba actually grinned a little. The thought of having no other friends than bouncy, sparkly, pink-obsessed Galinda and arrogant, annoying Avaric was indeed horrible.

"How did that happen, anyway?" she wanted to know as they started walking again, his hand still on her arm. "I know you're rich and handsome and that you love to party, and all that; but frankly, I had thought you were smarter than that. Befriending Avaric?" She shook her head.

"I never said I was smart," he said, grinning at her. "He met up with me at the OzDust, after you and Galinda had left, and we had a little afterparty together with some other boys. We got drunk, then we danced and sang a little, and we had fun." His shoulders rose and fell in a half-shrug. "That's all, really."

"That's all," she repeated flatly.

"Yeah." He looked at her. "And though I'd like a friend with some more substance," he offered, "I also like having a friend to just hang out with, you know? Discuss hot girls, drink, boast about the girls we've had…"

He hadn't noticed the fact that the look on Elphaba's face had changed. She was scowling now, disapproval written all over his face.

Fiyero, however, was still talking, using wide arm gestures as he did so. "It's like I always say – you just got to continue dancing through life!" he said brightly. "No worries, no stress – just dancing, drinking, sex and laughter. What else could a guy like me wish for?"

"Brains," Elphaba snapped as she yanked her arm away, causing his hand to slip off and fall limply to his side. She sent a death glare in his direction. "Have fun dancing, Fiyero."

With that, she turned around and strode off, leaving Fiyero staring after her open-mouthed.

"Hey!" he called after her. "What did I do?"

She did not dignify that with an answer.


	2. Galinda's torture

**AN: You guys are amazing, thank you so much for your reviews! :D And yes, Fiyero is completely brainless once again... but this time he has a good reason for his behaviour, which you will find out about later :).**

**Moreanswers24, I love how you can threaten my life and give me love in a single sentence.**

**BlueD, your review left me in stitches.**

**Musicgal3, I LOVE YOU TOO AND I'M GLAD YOU'RE MY TWIN, TOO! Couldn't ask for a better one! 3**

**The part about Fiyero's tight white trousers is especially funny since the other day I logged in on Twitter and I got the following message: "Jeremy Taylor's Butt is now following you" (Jeremy Taylor currently plays Fiyero in London). I laughed so hard, you have no idea.**

* * *

**Chapter 2. Galinda's torture**

"…and then she just stalked off!" Fiyero complained. "I don't even understand why she suddenly grew so cold and everything! Do you think it was something I said?"

Galinda shrugged. "Just because we became friends, doesn't mean I know what's on her mind all the time."

Nessarose, who was sitting right next to the blonde, sighed. "It probably was, Fiyero," she said wearily. "Fabala can be so hot-headed sometimes. She probably took offence at something you said, but what, I can't possibly say. Though it could have been the mention of sex," she said, her eyebrows coming together in a disapproving knot. "Really, Master Fiyero, it's not appropriate to talk about such things – let alone to a lady – and it is certainly not proper to actually _do _such things."

"I don't know what it is about Elphie," said Galinda, shaking her head. "Sometimes I just don't understand her."

"You're not the only one," Fiyero muttered, and Nessa nodded in agreement.

"Well, anyway," Galinda said, changing the subject. Her face brightened. "Are you two going to that party Pfannee is throwing for her birthday next week? It's in town, at a bar called the Orchestra – it's supposed to be really awesome."

Nessarose shook her head. "I wasn't invited," she said.

Galinda immediately felt bad for the girl. "Oh, but you can still come!" she tried to cheer Nessa up. "Everyone always brings along friends and other people they know – the more, the merrier!"

But Nessa just shook her head again. "I'm not really one for parties, anyway," she said. "The OzDust was one thing, but that's not something I want to do every week."

Galinda pouted. "Oh, but Nessa –"

"I'm sorry, Galinda," the girl cut the blonde off before she could start pleading. "The answer is no." She tilted her head a little to the side. "But maybe Fabala will want to go," she suggested. "She should really go out more, get to know other people… she's always cooped up inside a classroom, her dorm room or the library."

Galinda's face lit up. "Ooh, that's a great idea, Nessa!" she squealed, clapping her hands. "I could take her shopping this afternoon! Ooh, and then I'll give her a makeover again, like I did after the OzDust party the other day… and Fiyero, would you dance with her? Please? Maybe that way, she won't just slip away to sit down in a corner somewhere and read the book she'll undoubtedly sneak in."

"Sure," Fiyero agreed easily. "I'll dance with her."

Just then, Galinda spotted her green roommate walking by outside, her nose in a book, and the blonde squealed. "Oh, there she is! I'll go and ask her right away!" She patted Fiyero's cheek. "Fifi, dearest, you'll pay for us ladies, won't you?"

Before the prince could even respond, Galinda bounced out of the café, running over towards Elphaba. "Elphie!"

Elphaba looked up from her book. Before she could say or do anything else, Galinda had linked her arm with Elphaba's and pulled her in the direction of the main street of Shiz town.

"Come on, Elphie, we're going shopping!"

Elphaba suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. "_What_?!"

Galinda huffed. "Oh, don't be dramatic about it. You don't have any classes this afternoon, do you?" Without waiting for an answer, she pulled the book from Elphaba's hands and stuffed it into her roommate's bag. "There you go. Now, Elphie – Fiyero, Nessa and I were just talking and we all agreed on the fact that you should totally go to that party Pfannee is hosting next weekend."

She chattered on as she started dragging Elphaba in the direction of the blonde's favourite boutique. "Pfannee is turning twenty, which is, of course, a big milestone, and so it's reason for a party! So, anyway, we're going to the Orchestra next Saturday to celebrate; and we think you should come, too. Before you say no," she said when Elphaba opened her mouth to protest, "I'd like to remind you of the fact that there is more to life than lectures and books and libraries; and that I would really, _really _love for you to come."

Elphaba closed her mouth and looked at Galinda, clearly torn. The blonde widened her eyes and pouted.

"Pretty please?"

Elphaba sighed. "Glin –"

"Fiyero really wants to dance with you," Galinda added. "And you would make me _so _happy if you'd let me give you an eensy-weensy tiny little makeover and come along with me to the party. You won't even have to stay for long; just promise me you'll come."

Elphaba gave the blonde a long look before caving.

"Alright," she sighed. "But no pink and no sparkles for the makeover… and no more than two hours of shopping," she said sternly.

Galinda spluttered for a while, but then she grunted and gave in. "Okay, fine."

"And at the party," Elphaba added, "you will _not _complain if I pull out a book, and you will _not _try to make me stay when I want to leave."

"Fine," Galinda conceded. "But you can't leave until you've stayed for at least four hours."

"One," Elphaba argued.

"Three."

"Two. And not a clock-tick longer."

"Two," Galinda agreed. "Unless you're having fun."

Elphaba snorted.

"Don't be so pessimistic, Elphie," Galinda chided her friend. She pulled the green girl into a store and immediately started collecting dresses.

"Every girl needs a little black dress," she decided, pulling one out. "Or, well, every girl but me – black makes me look like someone just died." She grabbed some more short, black dresses and piled them on top of one another in her arms. "And at least you won't object to black."

"I won't," Elphaba said warily, "but I _will _object to extreme short skirts, sequins, ruffles, bows or ribbons, cleavage, and showing too much skin in general."

Galinda huffed. "You're no fun." She shoved her friend into a fitting room with the dresses she had already found. "Here, try these on. I'll go find some more colourful ones!" She skipped off.

"No pink!" Elphaba called after her, though she wasn't sure if the blonde could still hear her – and if she could, if she would actually listen.

Elphaba begrudgingly tried on some of the dresses. One of them was strapless and didn't reach any lower than halfway down her thigh, clinging to her forms a little too tightly, so she hung that one aside. The next one had a see-through bodice – no way she was ever going to wear that.

Soon the pile of dresses she was _not _going to wear was enormous, and she only had two dresses left to try on.

"Elphie?" Galinda asked from outside the fitting room. "How do they look on you?"

"Horrible," the green girl replied, pulling one of the remaining dresses off the clothes hanger and putting it on.

"I have some other ones here, if you want to try them," Galinda offered. "I've got blue, and purple, and red, and bronze…"

Elphaba glanced at herself in the mirror. Hmm. Not bad. "I guess this one is okay."

"Can I see?" Galinda asked excitedly.

Suddenly, Fiyero came walking through the door, looking cheerful.

"Hey, Glin," he greeted the blonde. "I thought I would find you in here. Listen, you disappeared so suddenly back at the café and I just wanted to ask you about -"

Just then, Elphaba hesitantly stepped out of the fitting room to show her friend the dress, which had spaghetti straps, a corset-like bodice and a flowing skirt that just reached her knees.

Galinda immediately started squealing, interrupting the Vinkun prince. "Oh, Elphie! It looks _gorgeous _on you! You just _have _to buy this one!"

Elphaba, however, was staring in complete shock and horror at Fiyero – who was just as speechless, but for a different reason.

"I – whoa," he finally managed. "I can only agree."

Elphaba's face was flushed and she all but ran back into the fitting room in order to escape his eyes. "What in Oz are you doing here?" she demanded in a high voice from the other side of the curtain. "You're not supposed to see me like this!"

Fiyero raised an eyebrow and exchanged a look with Galinda. "What? Why not?"

"Elphie," Galinda pointed out patiently, "if you're going to buy this dress and wear it to Pfannee's party, he would see it soon, anyway."

"Then I'm not buying this dress and wearing it to Pfannee's party!" came Elphaba's voice. "It's too short, anyway – it exposes way too much skin. Do you think anyone wants to look at all that green?"

"Well," Fiyero said honestly, "I can't say _I_ would mind."

Galinda smirked at him before looking at the curtain again. "Elphie, you're exaggerating."

"No. I'm not buying this dress."

"Elphie, _please_."

"Yeah, Elphie, _please_," Fiyero added. "It looks really gorgeous on you."

She huffed. "Shut up. And don't call me that."

Why did he insist on bothering her all the time? She didn't want him here, and she certainly didn't want him to lie to her about the way she looked. Was he trying to make fun of her, or something? Even now, after he had told her he wanted to be friends?

Her first impression of him had been right – he was nothing but an arrogant, careless, spoilt prince who used girls like they were doormats, sleeping with the pretty ones and making fun of all the others. He was just like Avaric and the rest of that popular clique.

When Elphaba didn't come out, Galinda asked a bit worriedly, "Elphie?"

The green girl sighed. "Tell Fiyero to leave."

He frowned. "There's no need to be rude," he muttered. "I'm going." He turned to face Galinda. "What I came to ask you," he said. "Considering the fact that it's a birthday party… do you have any tips regarding a present for Pfannee?"

Galinda giggled. "I bet your mere presence at her party will be the only present she wants from you," she teased him.

He grinned at her. "Right. Well… good luck shopping." He looked at the curtain. "You, too, Elphaba."

"Shut up."

He left, and Galinda heaved a deep sigh. "Elphie, why do you have to be so hostile towards him?" she wanted to know. "He's just trying to be nice."

"He's not trying to be nice." Elphaba poked her head out of the fitting room to glare at her friend. "He's trying to humiliate me."

Galinda looked at her friend in confusion. "What? That's ridiculous." She shook her head, sending her blonde curls flying around her head. "Why would he do that? And more importantly, _how_? All he said was that he thinks you look gorgeous in that dress – which, really, you do."

"No, I don't." Elphaba disappeared inside of the fitting room again for a moment and Galinda could hear her shuffling around. Then the curtain was shoved open and Elphaba appeared, dressed in her own dark blue frock again and with the pile of dresses on her arm. "Where can I leave these?"

"Just dump them in that chair," Galinda said, waving at a chair in the corner of the room. "The shop assistant will put them back where they belong. You _are _buying that one dress, aren't you?"

Elphaba sighed and nodded. "I guess," she said reluctantly.

"Yay!" Galinda squealed and threw her arms around her best friend, squeezing tightly. "This is going to be the best party ever!"

"You say that about every party," said Elphaba, rolling her eyes, but she was smiling a little. Who knew? She might actually end up having some fun.

* * *

"Let me guess," Fiyero said as he plopped down in the seat next to Elphaba. "You hate this party?"

Elphaba glanced up from the book she had been reading in a corner of the room, where the other students would leave her alone. Her shoulders rose and fell in a half-shrug in response to his question.

"Parties aren't really my thing," she said.

He laughed. "I thought Galinda said you've only ever been to one party in your life."

She actually smiled a little. "True. But that party was horrible, too."

He bumped her shoulder with his. "It wasn't that bad, was it? Certainly it got much better after I started talking to you?"

She slammed her book shut, an irritated expression on her face. "Why are you always being so cocky?" she asked him. "I'm serious – I genuinely want to know. Sometimes you're almost _nice_; but then you always say or do something incredibly stupid or arrogant again."

He shrugged. "It's what people like most about me," he said. "I'm handsome and I know it." He winked at her.

She just scowled.

He shook his head. "Okay, my turn," he said. "Now I have a question for _you_." He inched closer to her. "Why do you seem not at all affected by my irresistible charm?"

"Gee, I don't know." She tapped her chin, pretending to be thinking about the answer to that question. "Oh, I _do _know!"

She jabbed her finger in his chest. "Maybe," she said, "just maybe, not _all _girls immediately bow down to kiss your feet the moment you walk by. Maybe some girls are actually looking for some substance in a person. Maybe some girls _loathe _arrogant party boys who drink until they burst and take home a different girl every night."

She crossed her arms and glared at him. "Maybe," she sneered, "some of us are _different_."

He barely batted an eye. "No kidding, huh."

She narrowed her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded hotly.

He shrugged. "Nothing," he said. "Just that I already noticed you were different."

"Yes, that's pretty hard to overlook, isn't it?" she spat at him, her dark eyes flaming. "Given the fact that according to you, your driver confused me with a _traffic light_, I suppose you really did notice that I am different. Congratulations on being so observant, Master Tiggular." She stuffed her book back into her bag with an angry movement and rose to her feet. "I think I'm going back to my dorm room now. Goodbye."

"Hey, wait." Fiyero caught her hand, tugging on it until she stood still. He looked up at her, a serious expression on his face for once.

"I didn't mean it like that," he said.

She snorted. "Sure you didn't."

"No, I really didn't!" He ran his fingers through his hair.

"I wasn't talking about your skin," he said. "I just meant that you're… I don't know." He cocked his head a little to the side. "You're just… different," he said, shrugging. "Smarter… more independent. I like that." He gave her a cocky grin. "It makes you a challenge."

She eyed him warily, not saying anything. A challenge. What was she supposed to make of that? That he wanted to hang out with her just because he wanted to see if he could get her to sleep with him, or something? Was that all?

"You're interesting," he added, tugging at her hand again until she reluctantly sank back down into her seat.

He looked at her with a smile on his face, rather than his usual grin or smirk. "And besides," he said, sounding casual, but his eyes were burning with intensity and they never left hers. "Did I tell you that you look very beautiful tonight?"

She bristled. "Look, those tricks may work on any other silly girl you want to talk into coming home with you tonight, but I don't –"

"Hey!" he interrupted her, irritated himself now. "I'm not trying to talk you into anything! I'm just trying to give you a compliment!"

"By lying to me?"

"Why would I be lying?" he wanted to know. "You just look beautiful. Sorry for noticing."

She scowled, crossing her arms. "I'm not beautiful," she insisted, "and you know that as well as I do."

"Why not?" he demanded. "Because you're not Galinda?"

"Because I'm green!" she almost shouted at him. Did she really have to spell that out for him?

He stared at her. "You think you're not beautiful because you're _green_?"

She didn't respond, just huffed and looked away.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you you're beautiful?" he asked her, clearly baffled. "Don't all parents tell their children that?"

She glared at him. "Goodbye, Fiyero."

He threw his hands up into the air in submission and watched as she, for what felt like the thousandth time since he had met her, stalked away from him.

* * *

**Reviews are like pie - oh no, wait - _cupcakes - _to me! :D  
**


	3. Dancing through life

**AN: Visit my blog for a picture of Elphaba's dress! :) The party isn't over just yet...**

**Yep, Fiyero is annoying. Galinda is there, trust me... you'll see *smirk*. And just to be clear: no, Fiyero and Galinda are not dating here. They just had a fun night at the OzDust and that's it. I think I mentioned it somewhere, but it wasn't very clear - sorry about that.**

**And yes. PIE. LOTS AND LOTS OF PIE. MUAHAHAHAHA.**

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**Chapter 3. Dancing through life**

"_Elphaba Melena Thropp._"

Elphaba, who had been on her way out of the bar, cringed. She had hoped to be able to sneak away without her blonde friend noticing.

Galinda was standing behind her, her arms crossed and tapping one high-heeled foot. "Where do you think you're going?" she asked pointedly, raising one eyebrow.

"Home?" Elphaba tried, but Galinda's eyes narrowed.

"Elphie," she said. "What time did we get here?"

Elphaba gave her a puzzled look. "Around ten, I think," she said, because of course Galinda had insisted on being fashionably late – not to mention the fact that she'd spent hours on both her own appearance and Elphaba's. "Why?"

"What time is it now?"

Elphaba blinked in confusion. "Um… half past eleven?"

Galinda glared at her. "And _how long_, exactly, did you promise me you'd stay before you'd go home again?"

Elphaba sighed and her shoulders slumped. "Two hours," she muttered.

Galinda giggled at her and looped her arm through Elphaba's. "Sorry, Elphie. No going home for you yet." She bounced a little. "And because you tried to sneak off early, I'm going to add another hour. No leaving before one, Elphie."

Elphaba's eyes widened. "What? Galinda!" she protested. "We had a deal!"

"A deal you tried to break." Galinda squeezed the green girl's arm. "Oh, don't worry, Elphie. You look so pretty – if you'd just come with me and mingle with the people a little, you'll have ten boys asking you to dance within a minute, I'm sure of it!"

"That makes one of us," Elphaba mumbled as she followed Galinda, who made her way through the crowd with practised ease. The blonde led her to a small group of people standing a little apart from everyone else – Pfannee, Shenshen, Milla and Avaric among them.

"Galinda!" Milla said enthusiastically. Her smile froze when she saw Elphaba standing behind the blonde. "And… Artichoke."

Galinda scowled. "Her name is Elphaba."

"Riiiight. Elphaba." Pfannee gave the green girl a smile that was just dripping with fakeness. "It's _so _nice to have you. Are you enjoying the party?"

"Sure," said Elphaba, not really sure what else to say. Pfannee just gave her another of those smiles and nudged Avaric between the ribs.

"Avvy," she said, "Ar- _Elphaba _looks like she wants to dance."

Elphaba immediately started spluttering. "Oh, no, really, that's not necessary -" she began, but Pfannee cut her off.

"I _insist_," she said, smiling again with a mean glint in her eyes. "Avaric, why don't you take Elphaba to the dance floor to dance for a little bit?"

Avaric smirked. "Oh, I would, Pfannee," he said, "but I didn't know vegetables were capable of dancing."

Shenshen elbowed him in the side. "Don't be a wuss," she scolded him. "If Galinda can be friends with the green girl, then so can we." Contrary to her friends, she actually seemed to mean it – she had clearly missed the looks Avaric, Pfannee and Milla were exchanging. Galinda had missed them, too – she was beaming, glad that her friends were finally getting along.

Elphaba, however, had noticed; and she protested as Avaric grabbed her arm and started dragging her over to the dance floor. "Avaric, I really don't think –"

"Shut up, you stinky Artichoke." He all but yanked her into his arms and grinned down at her. "So you let Galinda talk you into wearing an actual dress, huh? It's funny, really, but it actually looks pretty good on you. I mean," he said as he shifted her a little, continuing to dance with her as he 'accidentally' stepped on her foot, causing her to yelp, "it would, if you weren't the colour of snot." He cocked his head to the side. "How can you live with yourself?" he asked her. "I would want to throw up every time I looked in a mirror." He stepped on her foot again, smirking when she gritted her teeth in pain.

He twirled her, then pulled her back, digging his fingernails deep into the skin of her bare shoulder. He laughed when she grimaced.

"What?" he asked her mockingly. "Does that hurt?" He dug deeper.

She yanked herself free.

"Why don't you just leave me alone," she said, eyes flaring, "before I decide that you would look better with a high heel in your groin."

He took hold of her again and dipped her, using it as an excuse to bring his face close to her ear and whisper, his hot breath ghosting over her cheek, "You know what, green bean? Someone should just do us all a favour and toss you off the bridge and into Suicide Canal." He smirked. "But then again… you do look sort of hot in this dress. Maybe I should take you home instead." His hand drifted down the skirt of her dress and touched her bare leg, making her jump. His smirk widened.

"How about I show you some stuff back in my room?" he breathed in her ear. "Or in a bathroom stall," he added, "or in an alley just around the corner – I don't really give a damn. But I _do _believe that maybe your problem is just that you need a good f- _ouch_!" he yelped, grabbing at his foot.

Elphaba smiled innocently at him. "Oops."

He grunted and stepped closer to her again, grabbing both her arms and dragging her towards him. She could feel his fingers digging into her skin and she already knew he was going to leave bruises.

"Two can play this game," he hissed at her. "Watch it, Thropp – you'd better be nice to me, or else…" He squeezed harder, making her gasp. "…or else I might just be waiting at Suicide Canal the next time you come near there."

"You know what?" she whispered to him, beckoning him closer. He leant in a little, wanting to hear what she had to say.

"I," she said slowly, "am not afraid of you."

With that, she brought her knee up into his groin and pushed him off of her. He let out a string of colourful curses as he stumbled backwards and bumped into a group of other dancers, who all gave him dirty looks.

He stayed on the floor for a moment, doubled over in pain and gritting his teeth. Then he looked up at Elphaba with a look of disgust in his eyes.

"You," he groaned, "are _so_ dead."

She waved sweetly at him. "Bye, Avaric."

With that, she turned around and started making her way over to the door. She was completely fed up with this entire party, and all she wanted now was to go home and find a good book to read until she fell asleep. She was sure about one thing: she was never going to go to another party ever again.

Just then, however, she heard Avaric scrambling to his feet behind her. A glance over her shoulder told her he was elbowing his way towards her, a murderous look in his eyes.

She gulped. Maybe challenging him hadn't been such a good idea. It wasn't that she couldn't take him in a fight… okay, well, maybe it was. She knew how to punch people and he was not a coward, but Avaric was twice as broad and muscular as she was. In a physical fight between the two of them, Avaric would win and they both knew it.

She quickened her pace, wanting to get out of here as soon as possible. She felt Avaric's fingers, hard as steel, close around her wrist; and she resisted the urge to wince.

"Not so fast," he said. "I'm not done with you yet."

"Hey, Avaric," a new voice said. "Mind if I cut in?"

Elphaba turned, only to see Fiyero swiftly stepping in, prying Avaric's fingers off the green girl's wrist and standing in front of her.

"Yes," Avaric grumbled. "I do, actually."

"Too bad," said Fiyero, casting a smile in Elphaba's direction over his shoulder. "It's my turn now."

Avaric scowled. "Fiyero, stay out of this," he warned.

"Out of what?" the prince demanded. "Please don't tell me you were planning on fighting a girl. Not even you would sink that low, would you?"

Elphaba felt anger bubble to the surface when she heard him talking like that – as if she was just a helpless, fragile little girl who couldn't keep herself up in a fight against a boy! – but she did feel relieved when Avaric grumbled something under his breath and turned around, stalking back over to his friends.

Fiyero turned to face her, smiling. "So," he said, bowing. "May I have this dance?"

She pointed at the door. "I was actually just leaving…"

"Aw, come on." He swept her into his arms, placing one hand on her waist and lacing the fingers of his other hand with hers. "Just one dance."

She sighed, but complied. "Just one."

He grinned at her. "Great." He guided her across the dance floor with a skill she hadn't expected of him – but then again, he was a prince. He had probably learnt how to dance when he was still very young.

"You didn't have to defend me, you know," said Elphaba, sounding a little more gruff than she had intended. "I can fight my own battles. I'm not some pristine little princess who needs protection."

He spun her around. "I know."

They were silent for a while as they danced. Then Elphaba said, "So, what? What do you expect me to do now? You saved me from Avaric, so now I have to go home with you and spend the night, or something?"

He frowned at her. "No, of course not."

"No, of course not," she mimicked him. "How could that thought ever have crossed my mind? Of course you don't want to sleep with the Artichoke."

"Elphaba." He pulled her to a halt and looked at her, his brow still furrowed. "Just say thank you."

She crossed her arms. "No," she insisted. "I know you must have had some hidden motive, or you wouldn't have done it."

"No hidden motive." He started dancing with her again. "The only motive I have is what I already told you a thousand times – I want to be your friend. Friends stick up for one another. That's all. I don't think you're weak, I don't think you couldn't have beaten Avaric in a fight. I am not expecting you to come home with me – not because I don't want you to or because you're green, but because I'd like to think I can be a gentleman when I want to be and just do something for a girl without expecting anything in return, especially when that girl is my friend." He twirled her again. "Got it?"

"Oh." She allowed him to pull her closer and dip her. No stinky, hot breaths in her ear this time, and no threats about Suicide Canal or hands roaming up her skirt. All Fiyero did was give her a lopsided grin before hauling her back up against him.

She looked at his face as they danced. He was looking over her shoulder, a thoughtful expression on his face; but when he caught her staring, the thoughtfulness disappeared and he grinned again. A straight grin this time, not a lopsided one.

"What?" he asked her as she kept on studying him.

She shook her head. "Nothing." She kept silent for a moment, staring down at their feet before finally blurting out, "Thank you."

He smiled and squeezed the hand he was holding in his before spinning her around again. "You're welcome."

* * *

When she walked into class the Monday after that, Fiyero was already there, talking to Boq and Nessa. He waved her over when he saw her enter and she sat down beside him, smiling at her sister.

"Good morning."

"Morning, Fabala." Nessarose looked at the door, then at her sister. "Isn't Galinda coming?" she asked.

Elphaba shook her head. "She's skipping class to go shopping with Pfannee, Milla and Shenshen," she said, nodding at the empty seats in the back of the classroom. Avaric had found himself some other female students to sit with, chatting and showing off his muscles to a bunch of giggling girls sitting in front of him. Elphaba rolled her eyes before turning back to her sister. "It's Galinda's birthday next week," she reminded them all, "and so she _desperately _needs some new clothes."

They all chuckled.

"Hey, Elphaba," said Boq, turning to face the green girl. "Did you read that book Doctor Dillamond recommended?"

"Yes, of course," she replied, her eyes lighting up. "Did you?"

Boq nodded and the two launched into a discussion about the book and its themes, leaving Nessa and Fiyero staring at them without really comprehending what they were saying.

Fiyero shook his head and looked at Nessa. "So…" He cocked his head. "Are you and Boq together now?"

She flushed. Then she bit her lip. Then slowly, a small smile spread across her face. "I think so."

Fiyero grinned at her. "That's great."

Nessa nodded.

Not really knowing what else to say to the wheelchair-bound girl – they weren't exactly good friends, and he didn't know her all that well – Fiyero started studying Elphaba instead. Her dark eyes were alight with excitement as she talked about one of her favourite subjects, and she was constantly moving her hands to express her thoughts. She was talking fast, impatiently swiping a stray strand of raven hair out of her face. Her eyes never left Boq's as she talked; and when she wasn't talking, she tilted her head a little to the side as she listened. Her hair was tied back in her usual braid today, but it was adorned with a few small, white flowers and Fiyero could tell that she was wearing some make-up. He smiled. Apparently Galinda had gotten to her again this morning.

His eyes shifted further downwards, down the elegant slope of her neck and to her collarbone. She wasn't wearing a necklace. Now that he thought of it, he didn't think he had ever seen her wear any jewellery at all. Did she even own some? He figured he could buy her something for her birthday – whenever that was. He'd have to ask her sometime.

The thin cardigan she was wearing over her dress fell down her shoulder a little, exposing her upper arm, and Fiyero's eyes were drawn to the spot. Her eyes still on Boq, she quickly pulled the sleeve back up again; but by then Fiyero had already seen the dark bruises adorning the pale green skin on her upper arm and he gasped.

Nessa must have noticed, too, because at the exact same time she said sharply, "Fabala, what did you do to your arm?"

Elphaba broke off her conversation with Boq to blink at her sister. "What?"

"Your arm," Nessa repeated. "Those bruises." She nodded at the spot. "What happened?"

"Oh, that." Elphaba tugged at her sleeve, as if by covering the bruises well enough she could make Fiyero and Nessa forget they ever saw them. "It was nothing."

Nessarose frowned. "Fabala –"

"Really, Nessa," the green girl insisted. "It's not important. I'm fine."

"You didn't fight with anyone, did you?" Nessa asked, a disapproving look on her face. "Fabala, you're the Governor's daughter. You're supposed to be a lady. You can't just go around picking fights with –"

"Nessa," Elphaba cut her off firmly. "I did not 'pick a fight' with anyone, alright? Forget it. It won't happen again." It did not escape her attention that Nessa had said "_you're supposed to be a lady"_, rather than "_you are a lady"_; but it didn't really bother her. She was too green, too straightforward, and too sarcastic to be a lady, anyway.

Nessarose gave her a long look, almost seeming as if her eyes could burn straight through Elphaba's head to read her mind; but then she looked away and focused on the lecture, and Elphaba looked back down at her notes.


	4. Awkward conversations

**AN: Hello again!**

**PerlogAnnwyl: Yes, Nessa is younger than Elphaba. In this story Elphaba is about 2,5 years older.**

**Thedoctor24601: I laughed way too hard at that! Unfortunately for you, there will be another mention of pie in this chapter... :P**

**Nia: Avaric knitting... yeah, I don't see that happening anytime soon, haha!**

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**Chapter 4. Awkward conversations**

Elphaba was starting to think the others had forgotten about the bruises on her arm, and she already felt relieved; but when class ended and Boq pushed Nessa's chair out of the classroom, Fiyero turned to face the green girl.

"I understand you didn't want Nessa to know," he said, "because she's your younger sister, and all, and you don't want to worry her… but I want you to tell me where those bruises came from."

"Oh, really?" she said a bit snippily, bristling at the way he phrased that. "Well, _I _want to be the Wizard's Grand Vizier, to have a normal-coloured skin and to be able to fly all over Oz on a magical broomstick – but we can't always get what we want, now can we?" She pushed her books into her bag and slung it over her shoulder, intending to leave.

Fiyero's fingers closed around her wrist. "Elphaba."

She kept quiet.

She noticed how long and slim his fingers were as he brought them up to her shoulder, pushing her cardigan down to reveal the bruises again. Now that he took a good look at them, he could see that they were distinctly finger-shaped.

He sucked in his breath when he realised what he was looking at. "Did Avaric do this?" he demanded. "At the party this weekend? When he was harassing you?"

She pulled the sleeve of her cardigan back up to cover the bruises again. "I kneed him in the groin," she said as if that were an answer. "We're even now."

"Oz, Elphaba." His fingers moved to her other arm, pulling the fabric down in order to confirm what he had already thought he would find there – more bruises. He let go of her cardigan and clenched his fists, setting his jaw. "I'm going to kill him."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Fiyero, it's fine." She nudged him until he moved, allowing her to brush past him and towards the door. Fiyero stayed where he was for a moment, eyes flicking back and forth between Elphaba and Avaric, who was still sitting in the back. He felt conflicted; should he go to Avaric and punish him for what he did, or should he listen to Elphaba?

Finally making a decision, he shook his head and ran after Elphaba, following her.

"I can't believe he did that," he said as he caught up with her. His fingers brushed the spot on her right arm briefly. "Does it hurt?"

"I am not a porcelain doll," she told him firmly.

He frowned. "I never said you were."

"Then stop treating me like one," she snapped, stepping away from him in order to create more distance between them.

A hurt look briefly crossed Fiyero's face, but then he shook it off. "What is the matter with you?" he demanded of her instead. "Why are you so intent on pushing people away? Every time someone tries to get close to you, you snap at them." He shook his head. "It's almost like you don't know how to maintain a normal, friendly relationship with someone," he said.

She didn't even look back at him. "Yeah? Well, maybe I don't," she said curtly, veering towards the History building.

"What, you've never had a friend?" Fiyero laughed at his own remark, but Elphaba stopped and glared at him and his laughter died in his throat.

"Wait," he said, blinking. "You have really never had a friend?"

"No-one ever took the effort to befriend a vegetable, Fiyero." She shrugged. "No, I've never had any friends. Galinda was the first. Happy now?" She started walking again, causing her braid to bounce up and down on her back.

"But… but that's horrible!" Fiyero caught up with her again, giving her a wide-eyed look that almost made her laugh. "You've never had any friends at all? How is that even possible?"

She sighed tiredly. "Like I said," she said patiently, "I am green. People tend to be not very accepting towards green people. No-one wanted to be friends with me, so I never had a friend. That's it. And if you dare to even give me a single look that suggests you feel sorry for me," she said fiercely, "I'm going to cut off certain parts of your anatomy in your sleep and we'll see who gets the pitiful looks then."

He gulped. "Point taken."

She smirked at him before entering the building.

He trailed after her, thinking about what she had just said. How could a person grow up without having any friends? He couldn't imagine his life without friends – his childhood friends, with whom he had played tag, climbed trees, and picked fights; the guys with whom he had chased pretty girls and gone out to secretly drink beer; and now Boq, Nessa, Galinda, and Elphaba… he imagined having grown up with just his family, watching other children form friendships, but never being part of one himself. He shuddered at the mere thought.

"Well," he said as he slipped into the seat next to Elphaba's in History class. "You have friends now, right?"

"Right," she agreed as she unpacked her bag and dug out a pencil. "Can we drop this subject now, please?"

He grinned at her cockily. "Why?" He dropped his arm around the back of her chair and leant in closer to whisper in her ear playfully, "Am I making you uncomfortable?"

"No," she said, shoving him. "But your chattering is distracting me from the lecture."

He laughed. "The lecture that hasn't even started yet?" he teased her.

She stuck out her tongue, and he laughed again. He loved the fact that she was loosening up a little bit more around him. The more he saw of Elphaba, the more he liked her. Maybe her opening up to him meant that she was finally starting to see him as a friend as well.

* * *

Elphaba was picking at the food on her plate, murdering her pasta with her fork as her eyes were glued to the display in front of her.

Galinda, who was sitting across from her, stopped talking when she realised the green girl wasn't paying attention. "Elphie?" She waved a hand up and down in front of Elphaba's face. "Hello-o, anyone home?" She pouted. "Are you not interested in my birthday?"

"Of course I am, Glin," Elphaba said with a sigh, looking at her friend for a moment before looking back at the couple across the room. "I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"Well," the blonde started again, enthusiasm taking over, "since I know you and Nessarose aren't really into parties, I was thinking I could host a party at the OzDust, maybe, or some other fancy place, for all the other Shiz students; and then we could do dinner with the five of us – you know, you, me, Nessa, Boq, and Fifi, my _real _friends – just before the weekend, to keep it nice and intimate, you know? You do remember Momsie and Popsicle are going to take me to the Emerald City for the weekend of my actual birthday, don't you? Ooh, I'm so excited – I'm going to see the Emerald City!" She squealed. "Oh, I wish you could come with me, Elphie! Momsie and Popsicle want some alone time with me, though – family quality time, they say. They're so sweet like that. But I'm going to tell you all about it when I get back, and then I'll be a year older, Elphie! I'm going to be twenty! _Twenty_! That's _two decades _– one-fifth of a century!" She gasped. "Oh my Oz," she suddenly wailed, "I'm getting old!"

"How long has this been going on?" Elphaba asked, not taking her eyes off Boq and Nessarose as the blonde ranted.

Galinda blinked, then realised Elphaba wasn't talking about her birthday at all and heaved a sigh, conceding. "Since the OzDust," she said patiently. "Look, Elphie, they're happy – Boq likes Nessa, Nessa likes Boq, they're a couple now. What's wrong with that?"

Elphaba grumbled something under her breath. "He's feeding her pie."

Galinda rolled her eyes. "Oh, no," she said sarcastically, "the nerve of that Munchkin! Call Madame Morrible, the Gale Force, the Wizard himself! Boq is feeding Nessa some pieces of _pie_! The scandal! How dare he?"

Elphaba glared at her roommate. "Sarcasm really doesn't suit you, you know."

Galinda stuck out her tongue. "Maybe I've just been spending too much time with you. Seriously, though, Elphie – just let it go. They're happy together. Aren't they happy together?"

"She's my little sister," Elphaba insisted. "I'm supposed to look out for her."

"Look, Elphie," Galinda said gently. "I know Nessa is your younger sister, and you've been taking care of her your entire life long… but she's eighteen years old now. She's practically an adult. You have to let her go sometime, Elphie, and now seems like a good time. You can't keep on taking care of her forever."

Elphaba looked at the blonde. "Yes, I can," she said simply. "And I will."

Galinda frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Elphaba sighed. "Glin… the only reason Father agreed to let me come to Shiz is so that I could take care of Nessa," she explained. "Nessa is his – and my – first priority. Always. She will be in that chair for the rest of her life. She will need someone to take care of her until the day she dies."

Galinda's eyes had widened in horror and she had frozen with her fork halfway to her mouth. "Are you saying your father wants you to be her caretaker for the rest of her _life_?!" she nearly screeched.

Elphaba simply shrugged.

"But… but Elphie!" Galinda spluttered, dropping her fork and grabbing Elphaba's arm over the table, forcing her friend to look at her. "That is _horrible_!"

"It's not _that _bad," Elphaba protested weakly, pulling back her arm. "I love Nessa. She's my sister, Glin. She's been my responsibility for eighteen years already and she will most likely continue to be so for the next –"

"Forty years?" Galinda interrupted her sharply. "Fifty? Even longer? That's no life, Elphaba!"

"What else should I do?" Elphaba bit back at the blonde. "Why do you think I wanted to come to Shiz so badly, Galinda? It's my only chance of a different life. If I can achieve something, if I could maybe work for the Wizard, like Morrible said I could someday… then I could be free. But that's my only way out. No man would ever marry me and Father would never give me the opportunity to travel, or keep studying, or work to build a life for myself. He needs me to take care of Nessa. So either I become the Wizard's Grand Vizier and finally make him proud, make him see that I can achieve good things, too… or I will do what he has in mind for me and care for Nessa. That's it. I don't have any more options, Glin."

Galinda was looking pale and had fallen completely silent – a very rare occurrence for her.

"Elphie…" she said in a soft and quivering voice.

"Don't," Elphaba snapped. "Don't look at me like that."

Galinda looked at her with wide eyes. "But –"

"I don't want your pity, Galinda. You're my best friend. I don't want pity from anyone, but especially not from you." Elphaba shook her head. "I've known this all my life," she said. "To me, it's nothing new. I'm used to the idea, and I'm fine with it, okay?"

They ate the rest of their meal in a slightly uncomfortable silence, after which Elphaba rose to her feet, muttering something about some work she still needed to do in the library. Before she left the café, though, she stopped and glanced over at Nessa and Boq once more. They were having tea now, talking quietly, their fingers entwined. They were both smiling and Nessa's eyes were shining.

When Boq excused himself a few minutes later to go and use the bathroom, he found himself cornered in the small hallway by Elphaba, whose dark eyes were glittering dangerously.

"Listen to me, Boq," she said in a low voice. "I can see that Nessa is happy with you, and I am happy for her; but I don't trust any of this. Up until the OzDust party, you've been pining over Galinda, and now you're suddenly with my sister?"

Boq gulped.

"I'm warning you now," said Elphaba softly. "If you truly do love her, then I apologise for this and I promise I will stay out of your way from now on. If you don't, however, then I suggest you come clean both to her and to me right this instant and I will spare you… a little." She bored her eyes into his. "But if you continue to play games with her," she hissed, "and thus with me, too, you'll regret it. Trust me. You break my sister's heart, and I will break your nose, your ribs, your arms, your legs… and maybe some other bones in your body as well, for good measure. Got it?"

Boq swallowed and nodded.

"Got it," he said, his voice slightly higher than usual. "Elphie – I mean, um, Elphaba… I know you're her sister and you want to protect her, and… well… you're right about Galinda." He shook his head, straightening up a little. "But I'm over that now," he said. "Sort of, anyway. I mean… I accepted I can never have her, and I moved on." He glanced at the door behind which Nessa resided for a moment and the look in his eyes softened. "I… it started out as a way to get Galinda's attention," he admitted, looking at Elphaba a little fearfully at that confession, but she didn't pull a muscle – she had suspected as much.

The Munchkin shook his head. "But it's not anymore," he declared, his voice stronger now. "I fell in love with Nessarose; and even though I don't know where this is going and I can't promise you I will stay with her forever, I do promise that I will treat her with the utmost respect and I will care for her to the best of my abilities," he said formally, meeting Elphaba's gaze.

She studied his face and his eyes for a few moments, thoughtful. Then she nodded.

"I believe you," she said. "I'm sorry about all this – forget it ever happened. I just wanted to make sure she'll be okay."

Boq nodded and flashed her a small smile. "I understand." He frowned. "Though I didn't quite know you could be so scary. Oz, Elphaba – I always thought all girls were just cute and sweet, but you can be as intimidating as a guy."

She raised one eyebrow. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Right. Um… I'm just gonna go to the bathroom, now, if you don't mind," he said quickly, and she shot him an amused grin before stepping aside, allowing him to slip into the hallway behind her.

* * *

**Love it? Hate it? Favourite lines? Let me know :).**


	5. The past is in the past

**AN: I love that you all loved the part about Elphaba threatening Boq :) and BlueD, it's really interesting that you said that you would do the same thing for your little sister... I'll get back at that at the end of this chapter, or this AN will be way too long again.**

**Thedoctor24601: I actually wrote 'cake' first... but then I decided to be mean and change it to 'pie' instead, heheh.**

**Moreanswers24, your review made me laugh, and yes, of course you can kill Avaric. Be my guest! *curtsies and steps aside***

**Emerald Minded Fictionist: No, that's not bad. I'm secretly smirking now. I managed to corrupt you! *cackles***

**Aww, Musicgal3, you're making me crysmile again. Yes, from now on that's a thing, because you and Xanne-Li do it to me all the time. Love you!**

* * *

**Chapter 5. The past is in the past**

Fiyero stared at the picture on the mantelpiece in his room, lost in thought.

He had always kept the photo, but he hadn't been able to look at it for a long time. Every time he saw it, all the memories came rushing back; and he usually ended up sobbing on the floor. He didn't want that. Especially since it had hurt and worried his parents, whom he had still been living with back then, to no end. No-one had wanted it to go this way, but they hadn't had a say in the matter. It had happened and they'd all had to learn to deal with it.

His parents had been shocked; but even though they had been rather close to her as well, they hadn't really given themselves the time to grieve. His father had buried himself in his work, worrying about all the political consequences this was going to have and arranging all kinds of things with all kinds of people. His mother had mostly worried about Fiyero, trying to help him deal with his grief the best she could. Most people, however, hadn't recognised that he was grieving in the first place; and those who did recognise it mostly didn't understand why. They never realised how much he had cared.

And then, one day, he had turned everything around and found a way to deal with it all. Not a good way, but a way nonetheless.

He shook his head now, heaving a deep sigh and turning away. He should really learn to leave the past alone, but somehow the memories just kept forcing themselves onto him lately and he just didn't understand why. What had changed? Why couldn't he just continue to push everything away, drowning himself in alcohol and parties and girls in an attempt to forget?

A knock on his door startled him from his thoughts and he ran a hand through his hair, shaking himself from his thoughts. He opened the door, only to find his friends standing there – Galinda right in front of him, looking up at him with a frown, with Elphaba leaning casually against a wall behind her and Nessarose and Boq staying a little bit in the background.

He took in Galinda's accusing look and Elphaba's raised eyebrow and winced. "Did I forget something?"

"Fifiiiiii!" Galinda stomped her foot, squealing indignantly. "You're not even _dressed _yet!"

"I told you he forgot," said Elphaba, but Galinda ignored her.

She huffed and crossed her arms. "We were supposed to go out for dinner tonight," she said, pouting. "All of us. We were going to meet at our dorm room at seven."

Fiyero glanced at the time. It was a little before eight. "Um… oops?"

Galinda gaped at him. "That's all you have to say?" she demanded in a high voice. "Oops?"

Fiyero grimaced. "Um… well… I'm sorry?" he tried.

Galinda shrieked. "He's _sorry_!" she screeched over her shoulders at the others. She stomped her foot. "Fiyero, you _forgot_!"

He frowned, not really understanding why the blonde would be so incredibly upset about him forgetting a dinner meeting with the friend group. "Glin…"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You really don't remember, do you?" she asked him in amusement.

His frown deepened. "Um… no?" he said carefully. "Remember what, exactly?"

Boq winced in anticipation. Elphaba put her hands over her ears. Fiyero didn't understand why until Galinda started wailing even louder, her screeches nearly puncturing his eardrums.

"Galinda's birthday," Nessa reminded him, trying to make herself audible over the noise.

Fiyero's eyes widened. "Oh, shiz."

Elphaba's eyes were twinkling with unholy glee. "You're dead."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You really enjoy this, don't you?"

She grinned at him in reply.

Galinda, meanwhile, was still wailing, and Fiyero held up a hand to silence her.

"Glin," he said, "I'm really, really sorry I forgot."

She looked up at him with accusing eyes, tears standing in them.

"But I only forgot about dinner tonight," he added as an excuse. "I didn't forget about your birthday itself. I even got you a present – the best present _ever_. Would that make up for it? If I run back inside now, get dressed and then come with you… and if I'd pay for dinner… would you forgive me?"

She hesitated. He gave her his best pout and she caved.

"Fine," she grumbled. "Maybe. But you better hurry."

He kissed her cheek quickly, then stormed back inside, threw on a decent-looking outfit and grabbed his gift. He then joined the others in the hallway, flashing them all a lopsided grin. "Shall we go?"

Galinda kept on giving him these accusing looks all throughout their walk into town and inside the restaurant; but once they were all seated and had ordered their meals, she started to relax a little. Especially when Fiyero pulled out a wrapped present and handed it to her.

"Happy birthday, Glin," he said, planting three kisses on her cheeks, as was the Vinkun custom. "And again, I apologise for being so thoroughly rude as to forget about your birthday dinner." He dramatically put a hand over his heart. "Will you ever find it in your kind and noble heart to forgive me?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes, but Galinda giggled and allowed him to kiss her hand as well. "Of course, Fifi dearest." She unwrapped the present and squealed loudly when she saw what was inside. "Oh, Fifi! A tiara!"

She held up the sparkly thing, silver and adorned with pink gemstones. "I am totally going to wear this to my party tomorrow night!" She rose from her seat to hug him tightly. "Thank you so much!"

He laughed. "You're welcome."

The others handed her their presents as well, and she squealed over every single one of them – a classy pen and a pair of silver earrings from Boq, a small book on make-up and hairstyles from Nessa, and a beautiful, delicate, glass rose ornament from Elphaba. The base consisted of a glass pyramid with an inscription.

Galinda peered at it, trying to decipher the words. "'_Great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget.'_" Her eyes filled with tears and she sniffled. "You consider me a great friend?" Before Elphaba could even open her mouth, she was already being smothered in a hug by the tiny blonde. "Oh, Elphie," she blubbered, "you're so sweet! You're a great friend, too!"

They ended up having a nice evening together. Galinda chattered on about the party she was going to host the next night and about the Emerald City. Everyone pretended to pay attention, but no-one was really listening; Fiyero was drumming on the table with his fingers, Boq and Nessarose were mostly paying attention to each other and Elphaba was watching her sister and the Munchkin a little suspiciously.

She started when Fiyero nudged her arm. "Hey, Fae?"

"Mm?"

"On a scale from one to ten, how mad do you think Galinda still is at me?"

Elphaba studied her roommate's face for a moment. "After that present? A sparkly princess tiara?" She shook her head.

"Zero," she declared. "I think you're her favourite person in the entire world right now."

He grinned, relieved. "Good."

Galinda broke off her chattering to throw the duo a suspicious look. "What are you whispering about?"

"Nothing," they chorused. They exchanged a look and burst out laughing at the same time.

Galinda eyed them warily. "I don't think I even want to know." She looked at Boq and Nessarose, who were just sharing a sweet kiss, and squealed. "Oh! You guys are so cute!"

The two immediately sprang apart, Nessa blushing furiously and Boq's eyes darting everywhere.

Elphaba made a face. She had never seen her sister kiss a boy before; and even though she agreed with Galinda that they were kind of sweet together, she could have lived without seeing it.

"Nessa?" she said, trying not to let her surprise show in her voice. "Since when are you comfortable with kissing in public?"

Nessarose flushed an even brighter shade of pink.

"I'm not," she squeaked. "But Boq and Galinda say I need to loosen up more, and then you were all talking with one another and Boq said that no-one would notice…" She glanced at the Munchkin, who looked rather awkward.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

"Don't apologise!" Galinda hugged him, then threw her arms around Nessa. "You two are simply _adorabubble_ together!"

The blonde then started talking to Elphaba about something she had heard from one of her friends and Fiyero lost himself in thought again. He studied both girls, comparing them to other girls he had been with.

Galinda was like most of them. A relatively simple girl to be with: always bubbly and always looking pretty, all too willing to hang on his arm and allow him to show her off. She wasn't anything like Aliyra, not in looks and not in personality. In fact, the two couldn't be more opposite.

That was exactly why it was easier with girls like Galinda.

His gaze drifted to rest on Elphaba. When it came to looks, she maybe resembled Aliyra even less than Galinda did; but they had the same way of viewing the world, the same way of over-thinking everything. Aliyra had been much calmer – a little shy and always kind to everyone. She and Elphaba had the same intense manner of caring about people, but they expressed it in different ways.

Maybe that was what drew him most to the green girl – that she was a lot like Aliyra. Maybe it was just that and nothing else.

"Fiyero?" Galinda pinched his nose. "Hello. Are you listening to me?"

"Always," he said, flashing her a slightly forced grin, and she giggled.

"No, you weren't."

"Okay," he acknowledged. "I wasn't. I was just thinking. Sorry, Glin."

Elphaba was giving him an appraising look, one eyebrow raised. "You must be joking," she said in mock shock. "Was the great and scandalacious Fiyero Tiggular actually… _thinking_?"

He childishly poked out his tongue and she chuckled.

"Excuse me, Thropp," he said, scowling at her, pretending to be offended. "I do have a brain, you know."

"I know," she sniggered. "It's not a matter of _having_ one, my dear Fiyero; it's a matter of _using _it."

"Fabala, stop teasing the poor boy," Nessarose chided her sister and Elphaba obediently sat back in her seat. Fiyero noticed that Galinda was giving her roommate a look, but Elphaba did not respond and the blonde sighed and looked down at the table again.

They left not long after that, Galinda claiming that she needed to get enough sleep so that she would be well-rested for the party tomorrow and for her weekend in the Emerald City; and Fiyero and Boq decided to walk the girls back to their dorm room, despite Elphaba's protests.

"Fae," Fiyero finally said firmly. "We're coming with you, no matter what. If not for you, then for Glin and Nessa. You might as well stop protesting."

She did; but not before giving him a long look that, if looks could kill, would have turned Fiyero into a sizzling puddle of prince.

"Don't be like that, Fabala," Nessarose said, frowning a little. "It is only proper for the boys to escort us back to our rooms."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and followed the others out of the café as Fiyero fell into step with her.

"Yeah, Fabala," he teased her. "It's only proper for us to escort you back."

She glared at him, but there was a small grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. "I know, I know," she said, shaking her head. "She's a little bit… um… you know… sometimes."

Fiyero grinned back at her. "You could say that."

"She's not that bad," Elphaba immediately defended her sister. "She's a very sweet girl, and –"

"Calm down." Fiyero playfully linked his arm with hers and squeezed it. "I wasn't saying anything bad about her. I'm sure Nessa is great."

She gave him an unconvinced look, but didn't say anything else.

Fiyero looked at the others, who were walking a bit ahead of them. When he had assured himself that they weren't paying any attention to him and Elphaba, he looked at the green girl.

"How are the bruises?" he asked her quietly.

She was surprised that he remembered, let alone that he asked her about it, but she did not let it show.

"Fading," she replied. "It's fine."

He scowled. "I still wish you'd let me kick Avaric's ass," he grumbled, but Elphaba shook her head with a smile.

"I appreciate the fact that you want to help me," she said, "but I can fight my own battles, Fiyero. I don't want to give him the impression that I need you to protect me – that would only make things worse."

Fiyero sighed, knowing that she was right. "Still, though."

She squeezed his arm in reply.

* * *

"This is it," Boq declared hotly as he stormed into the cafeteria the next morning, plopping down in the seat beside Fiyero and crossing his arms. "I'm done with her."

Galinda nearly dropped her muffin. "What?"

"Nessa," the Munchkin said gruffly. "Elphie, I'm sorry – you can break every bone in my body if you want to, but I refuse to do this any longer. I don't mind escorting her everywhere, or carrying her things all the time, or helping her with everything… I really don't. But I never seem to do anything right, and I'm tired of it! I try my hardest, but she's never happy!"

Elphaba looked at the Munchkin, torn between siding with Nessa because she was, well, Nessa, and her sister; or siding with Boq, who was most likely right. She knew what Nessa could be like, after all.

"What happened?" Galinda asked curiously and Boq huffed.

"Last week I did not push her chair far enough to the table so she had to lean forward to reach the table and take notes," he said, "which I would have fixed if she had just _told _me, but no, she just threw that at me this morning. I didn't even know I did anything wrong at all. Then the other day, I didn't brush her hair 'the right way' and the day before that I handed her the wrong book when she asked for one. I mean, come on, I'm not perfect! I can't do everything right the first time!"

Galinda reached out to pat his hand comfortingly.

"And now," Boq continued unhappily, "now I went to pick her up for breakfast this morning, and she asked me to tie her hair up with her favourite ribbon… but then again, how do I know which one is her favourite? So apparently I grabbed the wrong one, after which she suddenly turned around and started screaming at me, listing at least a dozen things I had done wrong in the past weeks and shouting yet another list at me of things I did or didn't do that made me simply the _worst _boyfriend ever, and then she ordered me to leave, so I did. I'm done with her. Really."

"Can't blame you," Fiyero muttered sympathetically.

Galinda was frowning a little.

"A girl likes to be treated like a queen," she mused, "but then again, Nessa can be a little spoilt at times…"

"And temperamental," added Elphaba. She gave Boq a sly grin. "It runs in the family," she informed him.

Fiyero chuckled.

"But she doesn't usually mean what she says," Elphaba continued. "I'm sure she'll come around."

"I'll go and talk to her," Galinda promised, rising and hurrying out of the cafeteria.

By the time Elphaba had to leave for class, Nessarose had already come to see Boq, crying and begging him to forgive her. He had done so immediately, sealing the deal with a kiss, after which he happily pushed her to her first class of the day.

Elphaba stared after them.

"I will never understand relationships," she muttered under her breath.

Galinda giggled and linked her arm with her roommate's. "Of course you will. Once you fall in love –"

"I will never fall in love," Elphaba declared firmly.

Fiyero glanced at her. Galinda just shook her head.

"Oh, my sweet Elphie," she sang out, patting Elphaba's head as if she were a puppy. "So naïve!" She giggled. "You'll see, Elphie. One day you'll fall in love, too. And you and your boyfriend will fight, too; and when he pulls his puppy eyes on you, you'll forgive him, too. That's just how love works!"

Elphaba just rolled her eyes.

Fiyero determinedly stared at the floor.

* * *

**Okay, so the whole Elphie/Boq thing from last chapter is sort of based on a real-life experience, where I went up to the guy who's in love with my sister and summed up everything I would do to him if he hurt her (especially after the bad experience she's had with her previous boyfriend). I think he got a little scared :P. He's a friend of mine, too, though, and I know he's really nice, so I'm pretty sure he won't hurt her... but I wanted to warn him O:).**

**Also, you're all very hopeful for Fiyeraba and Fiyeraba weddings and Fiyeraba babies... not yet, my pretties! *cackles***


	6. Lions and feelings and guilt, oh my

**AN: This is the Lion Cub scene, slightly altered... and thus, this chapter doth end with - aye, thou hearest it right - a CLIFFY. Because it's been too long.**

**Love how everyone got scared because of the cackling, and of course you all immediately sang _Let It Go _when you read the chapter title :P.**

**I like your theories about Aliyra. Looks like most of you think she's either his little sister or his girlfriend/fiancée/wife (with some of you adding a pregnancy). I'm not saying anything, but your theories are interesting.**

**Broadwaygirl21: Sorry, no, I didn't get the quotes :3. Thank you so much, though! (And hey, I'm a 'special doctor'-to-be... your parents could just send you to me! *more cackling*)**

**Thedoctor24601: PIE. And thank you for the flying monkey support. And are you really apologising for leaving a long review? The longer, the better! Bring it on! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 6. Lions and feelings and guilt, oh my**

"Hey, Fae?" Fiyero asked when the two of them were in class together later that afternoon. The lecture had just finished, but Elphaba was still going over some of her notes, fixing them and ordering them until she was satisfied with the result; and Fiyero had decided to wait for her.

Galinda had come to talk to him earlier that day and she had left him a little worried.

"I had a talk with Elphie the other day," the blonde had explained, "and I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to tell anyone else…" She had sighed a little dramatically, as if she was carrying the world's weight on her shoulders. "But I feel like I have to tell _someone_, or I'll simply _burst_! You know I'm not good at keeping secrets, Fiyero!" She had even wailed a little.

He had promised her not to tell anyone and she had then proceeded to tell him what Elphaba had told her about Nessarose and the life that was awaiting the green girl after Shiz. Fiyero, frankly, had been shocked; and when Galinda had asked him to keep an eye on Elphaba whilst the blonde was in the Emerald City, he had agreed. And so here he was.

She didn't look up from her notes. "Hmm?"

He nudged her leg with his foot. "Do you want to hang out tomorrow?"

She blinked, then frowned at him. "'Hang out'?" she echoed, lifting one eyebrow.

"Yeah." He flashed her his most convincing grin. "You know, spend time together. Go somewhere. To the park, or to Suicide Canal, or to have a drink at the Primrose Café… something like that."

"Um…" She seemed to take a long time thinking about that question, her brow furrowed in concentration. "Why?"

"Why?" he repeated incredulously. "Well… um… because it's fun? Why else?"

She gave him a look, her dark eyes narrowed.

"You're up to something," she concluded. "You're acting suspicious. Spit it out, Fiyero. What's the problem?"

"There's no problem!" he protested a little too quickly.

She arched an eyebrow again – the other one this time, Fiyero noticed.

He squirmed under her gaze. "Don't look at me like that," he almost begged her.

She smirked. "Then tell me what's going on."

"Nothing!" he cried, but since he could see that she would not be fazed, his shoulders slumped and he gave in. "Okay, okay. Galinda came to talk to me earlier, and… she's just a little worried about you, is all. About leaving you alone this weekend," he clarified at Elphaba's puzzled look. "She asked me to spend some time with you." He figured that sounded better than 'she asked me to keep an eye on you'. Elphaba would feel like he was controlling her and then she would never agree, he knew.

Even now, she sighed irritably.

"Galinda is overdramatic and paranoid," she said a little snippily. "Don't listen to her, Fiyero. She's always needling me about me having to spend more time with friends and less with books, about my health, constantly telling me she's worried about me… there's nothing _wrong _with me, okay? I'm fine. You don't have to 'hang out' with me." She used her fingers as quote marks.

"I know I don't have to," Fiyero said, taking one of her hands in his own. "But I want to."

She eyed him suspiciously.

"And honestly," he added, "I'm a little worried about you, too. Especially with Avaric picking on you like that…"

"I can handle Avaric," she said brusquely.

"I know," said Fiyero. "But he did give you bruises." Before she could protest, he had already pulled the sleeve of her dress down to reveal her upper arm and he gave her a pointed look. "Bruises that still haven't faded, nearly two weeks later," he added.

She squinted at him and yanked her sleeve back up with more force than strictly needed. "What, are you my mother now?" she bit at him.

He stood his ground, however. "Look, Fae, would you stop being so defensive all the time?" he demanded a little gruffly. "Or do I have to give you the whole friend speech again? Just say 'yes' and we could go and do something fun tomorrow. It's very nice outside – why don't we go and have a picnic or something like that? Or find us a place to have a drink on a terrace somewhere?"

She kept on looking at him, studying him intently, as if judging his sincerity. He made his famous puppy eyes at her and she caved.

"Fine," she said. "We'll hang out. But only because I know you'll be stalking me if I don't agree to this."

He grinned at her. "You know me too well. I'll meet you in the courtyard at noon?"

"Sure," she agreed, and his grin widened. He bowed exaggeratedly, catching her hand and kissing it before she could pull it away.

"I will be awaiting your arrival, Milady."

She pulled her hand back and hit him across the head with her notes. "Idiot." But she was smiling.

* * *

It was that Monday, when they were both in History class together, that suddenly all kinds of things happened at the same time, pulling Fiyero into a whirlwind of action.

First, Doctor Dillamond was taken away and a substitute took his place. There was a Lion Cub, cowering and terrified, locked up in a cage; and as the students gathered around the cage in interest, Elphaba started yelling, horrified at what was going on. Then, suddenly, the entire class went completely crazy, twitching and moving around as if their bodies had a will of their own; and Fiyero did the first thing that came to his mind.

He leapt forward, grabbed the cage with the Cub in it, and shouted over his shoulder at Elphaba, "Are you coming?"

They ran, out of the classroom and out of the building, towards the forest right next to the eastern border of campus. They jumped over tree roots and dodged bushes before finally coming to a halt in the middle of a clearing, both of them panting slightly.

"Don't shake him," Elphaba said when he swung the cage down.

"I'm not." Even though he knew as well as she did that he was – not on purpose, but still.

"And we can't just let him loose anywhere," Elphaba continued quietly. "We have to take him somewhere safe."

Fiyero sighed. "I realise that," he said irritably. "You think I'm really stupid, don't you?" He put the cage down and turned to face her, his hands on his hips.

"No!" she said. Then she muttered under her breath, "Not _really _stupid."

He heard, anyway, and he bristled. Here he was, trying to be nice to her and befriend her; and all she did was snap at him and insult him.

"Why is it that every time I see you, you're causing some sort of commotion?" he sneered angrily, thinking of the party at the OzDust, and the whole ordeal with Avaric at Pfannee's party… and now this again. Not that he minded all that much, but still.

"I don't cause commotions, I am one!" Elphaba snapped back before brushing past him.

He snorted a mirthless laugh. "That's for sure."

She whirled around to face him again, narrowing her eyes. "Oh, so you think I should just keep my mouth shut, is that it?" she demanded of him. "Do you think I want to be this way? That I want to care this much? Don't you think I know how much easier my life would be if I didn't?"

He tried to interrupt her, but she just kept on raging and ranting, seemingly unable to stop. He rubbed his forehead wearily before shouting, "Hey!"

She fell silent.

"Do you ever let anyone else talk?" he asked gruffly. Again, it wasn't that he minded. Not at all. She had a pretty voice – melodious and a little breathy, though it tended to get a sharp edge to it whenever she was annoyed. Or angry. Or sarcastic. Come to think of it, that sharp edge was more often present than not.

"Sorry," she said now. "But can I just say one more thing?"

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, but didn't interrupt her again.

"You could have walked away, back there," she said. She sound almost incredulous. "But you didn't. You… you helped me. With the Cub, I mean."

He shrugged. "We're friends, right?" he said. "That's what friends do. They help one another."

A smirk was tugging at the corners of her mouth. "So," she said a little smugly, "no matter how shallow and self-absorbed you pretend to be…"  
"Hey, hey, hey," he cut her off sternly. "There's no pretence here. I happen to be genuinely self-absorbed and deeply shallow."

Her smirk widened. "I was right about you."

He frowned. "What?"

"Not my first impression," she corrected herself, "but I just had a gut feeling that you were different than you pretended to be. You're not like Avaric. You're not happy with a life of partying, drinking, sex, and pestering green girls. In fact," she said, circling him like she was a predator and he was her prey, "I don't think you're happy at all."

Ouch. That one cut a little too close to home.

"Look," he said grumpily, "if you don't want my help…" He made to walk off – she could handle that Cub by herself. Miss Smarty-Pants.

"No, I do!" she said quickly, lunging forward and grabbing his hand.

He stared at their joined hands for a moment. Then he stared at her face.

She quickly dropped his hand, turning away from him with a furious blush on her cheeks. She knelt down next to the cage with the Cub in it, pretending to be absorbed in comforting it.

"Its heart is pounding," she mumbled, shaking her hair in front of her face in order to hide her blush. Unfortunately, since she was still wearing her hair in a braid, that didn't work out too well. "I didn't mean to frighten it."

"Then what did you mean to do?" he asked her softly, kneeling down next to her. "And why was I the only one you didn't do it to?"

She bit her lip, unsure of how to answer that. Then she held her breath, bringing her hand up to his face. "You're bleeding."

"I…" He blinked, trying to look away, but he just kept on staring at her face. "I am?"

"It must have scratched you," she said softly. Never taking her eyes off his cheek, she pulled a small handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at the scratch with it, gently wiping off the blood. His eyes were still transfixed on her face and he suddenly wondered what it would be like to kiss her.

His eyes widened when he realised what he had just thought and he all but jumped away from her, as if he had been stung.

"I… I'd better get to safety," he stammered. "The Cub, I mean… get the Cub to safety. I – yeah." He grabbed the cage and ran off with it, shaking it even more now than he had been doing before.

He ran off and tried to pretend that he was leaving his feelings, his thoughts, and his confusion behind with Elphaba in that clearing.

* * *

He avoided her after that, she noticed. He didn't sit next to her in class anymore, he stopped insisting on accompanying her everywhere, and whenever they went out to have dinner with Galinda, Nessa, and Boq, he always made sure that he wasn't sitting next to Elphaba.

And despite everything, despite the fact that he could be annoying and obnoxious and she had more than once wished for him to just leave her alone… it stung. Because she thought they really had become friends over the past weeks, and to see him avoiding her now only confirmed her suspicions: she had crossed a line. She wasn't sure what had been the final straw – her touching him like that in that clearing, or her yelling at him for the umpteenth time, or the fact that she had insulted him – again… but she was sure that she had ruined it now. Their friendship, which had only barely begun, was over already and it was all Elphaba's fault.

"What happened?" Boq wanted to know when he, Nessarose, and Elphaba were sitting in class one day. "First he keeps trying to get your attention, claiming he wants to be your friend; and the next day, he starts avoiding you like the plague and barely speaks a single word to you anymore."

"What did you say to him _now_?" Nessarose demanded prickly. "Fabala, I told you this so many times already – you have got to get that temper of yours under control. This is getting out of hand. You've never had any friends, and the few friends you _do _have you keep pushing away with your snarky comments and insults. It's a miracle they even look past your skin – you should thank them on your bare knees for wanting to befriend you!"

Elphaba bristled at that, opening her mouth to argue, but Nessa just kept raging on. "But no, what do you do? You snap at them, act offended at every single word that comes out of their mouth – has it ever even crossed your mind that maybe, just maybe, people are being genuine when they tell you that they like you, or want to be your friend, or that they think you look nice? – and you just push and push as hard as you can until they give up. And now you're here, sulking, because Fiyero is avoiding you." She shook her head. "Well," she said firmly, "it's your own fault."

Elphaba deflated and hung her head, realising her sister was right. "I know," she muttered.

Boq gave Nessa a look and placed his hand on Elphaba's arm a bit tentatively. "Elphie?"

She looked at him.

"Just try to open up a little bit more," he suggested. "Whatever it is that you've done, tell him you're sorry and try to make it right. He'll forgive you." He squeezed her arm. "I get that it's probably not easy, being green, but you need to stop thinking that the whole world is out to get you. Granted, maybe people like Avaric and Milla and Pfannee are… but not _everyone _is. Give people a chance."

Elphaba sighed. "I guess you're right."

But she just couldn't bring herself to go to Fiyero and apologise. What if he laughed at her? What if he'd tell her that he never wanted to be her friend in the first place – that he had just been trying to have some fun with her, teasing her and making her look ridiculous, but that he had never been serious? Or what if he wouldn't forgive her, if he genuinely cared about her and she had driven him so far away with her behaviour that it was too late?

And so she didn't go to him. He didn't come to her, either. They didn't speak to one another at all for over a week.

Not until Avaric showed up near Suicide Canal one day to carry out his threat.

* * *

**Dun dun DUUUUUUN...**


	7. To kill an artichoke

**AN: Heheh, I'm glad to see you all liked my cliffy... good to know I have not lost my touch yet :P. Also, I have some thrillifying news - I found out today that I passed my final exam with an 8 out of 10, meaning I have got my Psychology Bachelor's degree in the pocket! :D :D :D I'm super happy about that - I've got a title now: Maddy, Queen of Cliffies, Bachelor of Science. Has a nice ring to it, right?**

**Broadwaygirl21: I'll tell you what - as long as I reign as your favourite author, you don't have to call me Queen. Deal? ^^**

**1katiemariee: Yeah, your review made me laugh *cackles*.**

**Emerald Minded Fictionist: Yes, that was intentional ^^ kudos for picking up on it!**

**Virtual cupcakes (unless you'd rather have pie?) to TheLilyReviewer for being the 100th reviewer of this story! *happily dances around***

**Okay, so this is an extra long chapter, with some Fiyeraba fluff included (not yet the Fiyeraba you are all waiting for, because that might take another... um... seven or eight chapters... but still) and it is dedicated to my amazing non-biological twin sister's twenty-second birthday. CONGRATULOTIONS, ELIZABETH! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 7. To kill an artichoke**

"Elphie, what is _up _with you and Fiyero?" Galinda asked the green girl one day, when the two of them and Nessarose were returning from their last lecture of the day. "Ever since I got back from the Emerald City, you two have been acting… strange."

"Yes," Nessarose agreed. "Fiyero's been avoiding her," she explained to Galinda, "because she's been acting… well… like herself."

Elphaba threw her sister an annoyed look, but didn't argue. Galinda just frowned at Nessa before turning back to her roommate.

"Did something happen?" she wanted to know. "Specifically, I mean?"

Elphaba shook her head.

"Not really," she said, not wanting to tell Galinda and Nessa about the Lion Cub. She wasn't even sure why. It just felt like something she wanted to keep to herself… a moment between her and Fiyero, and no-one else. "Not that I can think of, anyway."

"Huh," Galinda muttered, adjusting th strap of her purse on her shoulder. "Strange."

Elphaba looked down. "Maybe Nessa is right and he finally realised what I hassle I am to be around," she said bitterly, "and then he decided he doesn't want anything to do with me anymore."

"What?" Galinda laughed incredulously. "Elphie, that's ridiculous."

"Is it?" Elphaba asked her seriously. "Is it really? I'm not exactly a pleasant person to be around, Galinda. I've been rude and sometimes even downright mean to him."

Nessa spoke up thoughtfully. "You can be awfully defensive and rude sometimes, Fabala."

Elphaba made a hand gesture. "See?"

"But despite what I said the other day… I don't think Fiyero would be fazed by that," Nessarose continued.

Galinda looked at Elphaba triumphantly. "See?"

Elphaba muttered something unintelligible under her breath.

"I mean it, Fabala," said Nessa. "He's gone through so much trouble to try and befriend you – he wouldn't throw that all away so quickly. If it had really been about you snapping at him, he would have come around by now. Something must have happened. Maybe it's not even something that has anything to do with you," she added. "Maybe something is going on in his personal life – he could have had a fight with one of his friends, or perhaps something happened at home in the Vinkus… there are so many possible explanations for his behaviour. Don't assume it was something you said or did."

"Exactly," Galinda agreed. "It'll be fine, Elphie, don't worry. Are you coming for dinner with us?"

The green girl shook her head. "No, I think I'm going for a walk," she said. "To clear my head, you know? I'll get some food on the way there. I'll see you both later." With a small wave, she started walking in a different direction, intending to pass through town to get some food and then walk through the forest and on past Suicide Canal for a bit. That would maybe make her feel a little bit better.

* * *

She was walking down the path near the canal a few hours later, still lost in thought as she made her way back to her and Galinda's shared dorm room, when suddenly a large hand covered her mouth.

Her first instinct was to scream – which didn't help much, given the fact that the sounds she made were muffled by the hand on her mouth.

Her second instinct was to bite.

"Ow!" a voice hissed and the hand disappeared; but before she could turn around or even move at all, both her arms were grabbed and forcefully yanked behind her back and someone punched her in the stomach, causing her to gasp and double over in pain.

"You still had that one coming, you little green bitch," Avaric hissed at her.

She clenched her jaw. "Should've known it was you."

His eyes were gleaming. "I wasn't kidding about Suicide Canal, you know." He cocked his head a little. "I wonder if vegetables can swim. Or do they just stay afloat?"

"Avaric –"

"Don't try to talk me out of it, green bean. It won't work, anyway." He looked around him. Dusk was setting in and most students had already left campus by now – either to go back to their dorms or to have dinner in town somewhere.

"No witnesses. Perfect." He grinned at her. "Maybe this'll teach you to keep your big mouth shut." He gestured to his friends and they lifted Elphaba up, one with his hands under her armpits while the other took her legs.

She started struggling. "Avaric!" she yelled. "Tell them to put me down!"

"Um, let me think." He tapped his chin. "No."

"Avaric!" Her voice rose in pitch as panic took over, the boys dragging her closer to Suicide Canal.

"Oh, relax, green bean," he said, scowling. "It's just a bit of water. You won't melt. You'll live."

"I can't swim!"

"Nice trick." He scoffed. "Everyone can swim, Thropp."

"No, I'm serious!" She struggled fruitlessly. "Avaric, please! I really can't swim!" She hated the fact that she was almost begging him, but she had no choice. If they threw her into the water…

"Do it, guys!" Avaric called. "And hurry up a little, so that we can still get a table at the OzDustfor dinner." He turned around, clearly intending to leave.

"_Avaric_!" Elphaba screamed, still struggling, but to no avail. The boys swung her back and forth a few times and in her panic, she tried to claw at their arms, their faces, anything; but it was of no use.

"One," they called, laughing as they swung her. "Two… three!" They let go. She sailed through the air for just a brief moment before hitting the water hard, disappearing beneath it almost instantly.

The boys laughed and joined Avaric, walking off as they chuckled and mimicked her panicked pleas, making fun of her.

Elphaba was splashing around in the water, arms and legs flailing in an attempt to stay afloat, but she was having trouble keeping her head above the water. She managed to make her way over to the shore, but it was too steep for her to be able to climb out. She grabbed a vine, trying to hold on as the stream pulled at her, nearly causing her to lose her grip.

"Help!" she shouted, even though she knew that it was probably useless. No-one was walking around this part of campus at this hour anymore – it was quickly growing darker and most people avoided this place at night, since there weren't any street lights around here.

"Help!" she yelled again. A cry escaped her when her fingers slipped away and she was pulled under by the stream again. She fought to get back to the surface, but she couldn't even distinguish up from down or left from right anymore, she was so disoriented. The water tossed her around and in her panic, she took in a gulp of water, choking on it. She managed to struggle her way back up, breaking through the surface and coughing her lungs out; but then she was dragged under again.

"Elphaba!"

She tried to blink the water from her eyes. She could vaguely distinguish a figure running towards her alongside the shore, but she couldn't see who it was. Black spots were blurring her vision as she struggled her way up once more, managing to grab onto the mud bordering on the shore, but unable to hold on.

Suddenly, however, fingers closed around her arm and started pulling her out of the water. She kicked her legs in an attempt to help move herself towards the person that was helping her until he managed to grab hold of her other upper arm as well and all but dragged her out of the water. She collapsed in the grass, coughing and wheezing with every breath, with tears pricking her eyes.

"Elphaba?" That same voice again. She could do nothing but moan softly in reply.

A hand gently smoothed some of her hair away from her forehead.

"Elphaba? Can you hear me?"

She forced her eyes open; but just then, she could feel bile rising in her throat and she pushed herself to sit on her hands and knees and retched, all the water she had swallowed forcing its way out of her system. She threw up for what felt like hours, but could not have been more than a minute at most. Then she collapsed again, her trembling arms unable to hold her weight for long.

Only now did she realise that someone had been holding her hair back as she vomited, and she looked up. Her vision was still blurry, but clear enough so that she could see Fiyero kneeling down beside her, his blue eyes dark with concern.

"Fi-Fiyero?" she croaked.

"It's me," he confirmed, his voice anxious. "Are you alright?"

She grumbled something under her breath.

He helped her sit up, allowing her to lean heavily against him when it became clear that she was too weak and dizzy to even sit up by herself.

"I saw you in the water," he explained without her even having to ask. "I was on my way to my dorm room when I saw Avaric and some of his friends heading here, and I had a gut feeling that they were up to something, so I followed them. Thank Oz I did." He stroked her hair. "Did they throw you into the canal?"

She was shivering violently as she nodded. "Th-they didn't b-believe me when I said I can't s-swim," she said, her teeth chattering.

"Sweet Oz, Elphaba…" Fiyero quickly took off his jacket and wrapped it around her, but she was still shivering. He attempted to help her to her feet, but her legs were too wobbly to hold her upright. When he realised that, he carefully slipped one arm under her knees and the other under her back and lifted her up in his arms, cradling her against him. Her arm instinctively wrapped around his neck and her head fell against his shoulder, her eyes closed again.

"Elphaba?" He sounded worried.

"I'm tired," she muttered. "And everything hurts." Her lungs were still burning, a very unpleasant feeling, and she was feeling nauseous. Her head was pounding, she had a disgusting taste in her mouth, and she felt weak and tired, her entire body aching. She hated it. She had no idea drowning could be this exhausting.

Immediately after that thought had crossed her mind, she mentally scolded herself for being so overdramatic. She hadn't _drowned_ – she was still alive, after all. She was fine.

She must have said that last part out loud, because Fiyero said with a sigh, "No, you're not fine."

Too tired to argue, she kept silent, barely moving as he carried her across campus. It started raining, much to Fiyero's chagrin, though Elphaba barely even noticed. When they reached the courtyard, he hesitated for a moment before deciding on a direction to go in.

"I'm going to take you back to my dorm room," he told her. "It's closer, and I want to get you warm as quickly as possible, before you get sick. It's December, you're dripping wet, and this rain doesn't help, either."

The only reply he got was a round of coughing. She let her head drop against his shoulder again.

"Sorry for coughing all over your shirt," she murmured.

She could feel his chuckle vibrating in his chest and he shook his head. "Don't worry about it."

He dropped a kiss to her hair. She didn't protest and he carried her across campus to the boys' dormitories.

"Fiyero?" she mumbled when he pushed open the door with his shoulder and walked into a hallway to his right.

He looked down at her. "Yes?"

Her eyes fluttered open to look at him and she whispered, "I'm sorry."

He furrowed his brow, clearly confused. "What for?"

"For…" She sighed. "For yelling at you, and insulting you, and… well, for everything I did that day with the Lion Cub," she said, her voice smaller than he had ever heard it. "And everything before that, too, really. You were just trying to be nice and I was mean to you. And… I completely understand that you kept avoiding me afterwards," she mumbled, looking down. "You have every right to be angry with me and if you…" She swallowed. "If you don't want to be friends anymore… I understand."

He nearly dropped her, he was so shocked. "What?"

"I mean…" She let out a soft, mirthless chuckle. "I wouldn't want to be friends with me anymore, either."

"Oz, Fae…" He shook his head. "Is that what you've been thinking all this time?" he demanded. "That I was angry with you?"

She frowned a little. "I thought… I thought I'd chased you away by being so snarky and impossible all the time, and…"

He sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to give you that impression. You're not snarky and impossible, Elphaba. Not at all. It was just that… I mean, when we were in that clearing together…" He trailed off, then shook his head again. "Never mind," he said, "it's not important. As long as you know that I was not angry with you. I could never be angry with you, and I love being your friend."

He gave her a lopsided grin. "Did you really think I was going to put myself through so much trouble to get you to befriend me, only to give that all up mere days after we actually became friends?" That was exactly what Nessarose had told her only a few hours ago, she realised.

Fiyero shook his head. "No way," he said. "You're stuck with me, Thropp."

She smiled faintly.

He put her down momentarily, keeping a steady grip around her waist, to fumble around for his key. He opened the door to his room and scooped Elphaba up in his arms again, carrying her inside and kicking the door closed behind him. He took her to his bathroom and set her down on the edge of the bathtub, turning on the shower and testing the temperature of the water with his hand.

He looked at her over his shoulder. "Can you… I mean, do I need to…"

"Help me shower?" she finished for him, a hint of amusement in her voice. "I think I'll manage."

He gave her a sheepish grin. "Call me if you need anything, okay?" He went to fetch her a pair of pyjama trousers and a shirt and put them down in a corner.

"I'll make you something to eat and get a fire going," he said. "Just go take a hot shower now – you must be freezing."

He left the door open just a crack – just in case – and by the time she emerged again, dressed in a pair of pyjama trousers and a shirt of Fiyero's and with her hair still wet from the shower, he had managed to cook some hot soup and get a nice fire going. He helped her sit down in front of the fireplace and wrapped a towel around her hair. He then stripped his blanket off his bed to wrap it around her body and he sat down next to her, handing her a bowl of soup, which she accepted gratefully.

"Thank you," she said softly. "For… well, for all of this."

"You're welcome." He sat down on the couch behind her, unwinding the towel from her hair and using it instead to dry the dripping wet strands.

"I'm not a baby, though," Elphaba muttered as she ate her soup. "You don't have to take care of me."

Fiyero rolled his eyes. "Seriously, what is the matter with you?" he wanted to know, taking another strand of hair and rubbing it with the towel. "I'm only going to say this one more time, so listen carefully. I _know _you are capable of taking care of yourself. I _know _you don't need anyone – not a friend, not someone to help you, not someone to take care of you. You are independent and you can do it all by yourself. I know all that."

"So why are you constantly insisting on helping me and taking care of me, then?" she asked him. She didn't sound annoyed, which was a nice change. Instead, she sounded curious, as if she was genuinely interested in the answer to that question.

"Because I want to," he said simply, but truthfully. "Just because you are capable of doing it all by yourself, Fae, doesn't mean you have to."

She coughed a little and shivered, drawing the blanket tighter around her and cradling the bowl of soup between her trembling hands. Despite the hot shower she'd taken, the thick blanket around her, the fire, and the steaming bowl in her hands, she still felt cold all over.

"Where did _that _come from, by the way?" she asked, her voice hoarse. "The 'Fae', I mean?"

She felt him shrug. "I said I'd find you a nickname, didn't I? Why? Do you hate it?"

She hesitated for a moment. She didn't really hate the nickname in itself. It was more that she hated the feeling it gave her when he called her said nickname – annoying tingles and gooseflesh all over.

She finally settled for a muttered, "It's better than 'Elphie'."

Apparently Fiyero was satisfied with that, because he did not say anything else. When he had finished drying her hair to the best of his abilities and she had emptied the entire bowl of soup, he put the towel aside and slid down onto the floor next to her instead. She burrowed into his side, seeking his warmth; and he wrapped his arm around her as she buried her cold nose in his shirt.

He rubbed her arms, back and sides until he could finally feel her stop shivering. Then he rose to his feet and held out a hand to help Elphaba up as well.

"Come on, let's get you to bed."

She started spluttering protests, but he silenced her by holding up his hand. "Elphaba, you could have died!"

"Let's not get overdramatic," she muttered.

Fiyero stared at her in disbelief.

"You're calling me overdramatic?" He shook his head and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her a little. "Elphaba." He emphasised every syllable. "You told Avaric you can't swim. He didn't believe you. He and his friends threw you into Suicide Canal when _you can't swim_." He shook his head again. "So I don't think I'm being overdramatic when I say that you could have died. What if I hadn't been there and you hadn't been able to get yourself back to shore?" he asked her pointedly. "You could have drowned, Fae!"

"You make it sound like Avaric was trying to kill me," she mumbled. "He didn't mean to –"

"Please don't tell me you're defending him now. Are you crazy?" Fiyero clenched his fists. "I'll make him pay for what he did," he swore. "He's not getting away with this."

"I can do that myself," Elphaba said, scowling a little. "I don't need your help."

"I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer," he said. "Not after my little speech from not ten minutes ago. Did you not hear a word I said?" He scooped her up in his arms again and carried her over to his bed, making sure she was comfortable among the pillows before tucking the blanket tightly around her. He pulled another blanket from his closet and draped that one over her as well. "Are you warm enough?"

When she nodded, he went to close the curtains before sitting down on the edge of the bed again, moving his hand to smooth some of her soft, black hair away from her face.

"Just go to sleep," he whispered. "You're safe here."

Eyelids already drooping, she murmured, "Someone has to tell Galinda…"

"I'll send Boq to do it," Fiyero promised. He grinned. "That Munchkin will take any chance to see his precious Miss Galinda, no matter how much he really loves Nessa."

Elphaba smiled a little, even as she drifted off to sleep; and Fiyero leant down to press a soft kiss to her forehead before leaving her alone and moving to sit by the fire instead, lost in thought.

* * *

**Review? *puppy dog eyes* Favourite lines?**


	8. Pretence

**AN: I knew you'd all like the Fiyeraba fluff ;).**

**Thank you all for the congratulotions! I'm really happy myself. I'm currently working on re-doing an essay... and after that: summer vacation! :D (Including a holiday in Portugal with my family, London and Wicked with friends, and seeing Sister Act for the last time!)**

**ExoticPeachBlossom: Something about your review made me laugh. You'll understand that after the next chapter.**

**Elizabeth, I'm so glad you liked it! I hope you had the most fabulocious birthday ever :).**

**Bigby the Big Bad Wolf: Thank you so much, you have no idea how amazing it is to hear that. I feel honoured!**

**Bunny: Nope, this is going to be a long one!**

* * *

**Chapter 8. Pretence**

When Elphaba opened her eyes the next morning, she found herself confused. This didn't smell like her own bed… and this wasn't her own room. Where in Oz was she?

Then she remembered what had happened the night before, and she pushed herself into a sitting position. Across the room, Fiyero was sleeping on the couch – one leg and one arm hanging over the edge to let the tips of his toes and fingers graze the floor, his head tilted back and his mouth slightly agape. He snored a little.

She yawned, wincing at the stabbing pain in her head. Other than that, though, she felt much better than she had yesterday.

She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and padded over to the bathroom, the carpet covering Fiyero's bedroom floor feeling soft and warm underneath her bare feet. She looked at herself in the mirror and made a face. She looked like a zombie. A green zombie with tousled hair and sleepy eyes, dressed in a man's shirt and pyjama trousers.

She splashed some water in her face and rinsed her mouth before coming out again. Fiyero was up now, too, moving around the room as he put away the blanket and pillow he had used that night and cleaned up his room a little.

He looked up when she emerged and smiled at her. "Hey. Feeling better?"

She sank down on the rug in front of the couch, watching as Fiyero re-lit the fire in the fireplace. "A little, yes."

He went into the kitchen, only to come out again a few minutes later carrying a tray with two mugs of tea and two plates with toast and fruit. He put the tray on the salon table and scowled at Elphaba when he saw the gooseflesh covering her bare arms. "Do you not know how to take care of yourself or do you just refuse to do it?"

She raised an eyebrow. In reply, he went to grab the blanket from the bed again and wrapped it around her. "There."

She rolled her eyes.

He sat down on the floor next to her, their backs leaning against the couch as he handed her a mug and placed a plate in front of her. "Here you go."

"Thanks." She cradled the mug between her hands, taking a small sip of her tea and heaving a sigh of contentment. He grinned at her – a lopsided grin – and she studied his face.

By now she had learnt that his different grins had different meanings. His straight grin was the one he used when he was, as Elphaba had put it that day with the Lion Cub, 'pretending to be shallow and self-absorbed'. When he was fooling around with girls or talking about parties and drinking. He also used it when he was trying to be polite or when he wanted to placate someone.

His lopsided grin, however, was real – the one he used when he genuinely thought something was funny, or when something made him happy.

"It's all fake," she muttered, leaning her head back against the couch as she put her cup of tea down momentarily and closed her eyes. "Isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

"You." She indicated him with a hand gesture, not opening her eyes. "Everything I told you in that clearing. I was right, wasn't I?"

He stayed silent for some time – so long that Elphaba thought he wasn't going to answer her. Then he said, quietly, "I guess so."

She raised her head and opened her eyes to look at him. "Really?"

He shrugged. "Yes." He studied her for a moment. "How did you know?"

She smiled a little sadly. "I can often see through the masks people wear," she said. "It took me a while with you, because I was, admittedly, a little blinded by your…"

"Gorgeousness?" He dramatically struck a pose. "Awesomeness? Charm?"

"…arrogance," she finished, making him pout.

She smirked before growing serious again. "But that day with the Lion Cub," she said quietly, "I saw it."

"How?"

She shrugged, making light of it, even though her eyes weren't light at all. "Let's just say it takes one to know one."

Suddenly he understood. "You're pretending, too."

She didn't reply, but he nodded. It all made sense to him now.

"You pretend it doesn't bother you, what people say," he said. "All the remarks about your skin. But it does, doesn't it?"

"How can it not?" she said softly. "Yero… I've been treated like that my entire life. The children at school called me the 'frog girl' – people were calling me 'asparagus' and 'artichoke' before I even knew what those words meant." She shook her head. "I'm used to it," she said. "But that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt."

He squeezed her hand sympathetically. "I'm sorry, Fae."

She shrugged half-heartedly, only one shoulder actually moving up.

"No, really," he said, his tone so serious that it made her look at him. "I'm sorry. About… about everything, really. I'm sorry for what happened to you, and I'm sorry for saying all those mean things about you in the beginning, when we first met…"

She chuckled softly. "That's okay. I have yet to meet a person that does not give me weird looks or call me names when first meeting me… and at least yours was original," she added teasingly.

"Still," Fiyero insisted. "It's not okay."

"But it's reality," she replied, her dark eyes opaque. She sipped her tea and looked away, making it impossible for him to try and read her facial expression.

"For what it's worth," he said, taking her hand in his, "I promise that I, at least, will never do it again. Ever. And I truly am sorry for everything I said to you in the beginning."

She squeezed his hand. "Thanks, Yero," she said.

He grinned at her and gently poked her side. "So am I forgiven for being the brainless idiot that I am?"

"Only if you forgive me for being the grumpy know-it-all that _I _am," she said, and he laughed.

"Deal."

"Does that mean we're friends again?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No." Upon seeing her wide-eyed and slightly shocked look, he chuckled. "It means we never stopped being friends in the first place," he told her.

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh. Okay. Good."

"So you _do _like being my friend," he said smugly.

She glared at him. "Shut up."

He laughed, then rose to his feet, picked up the empty tray, and carried it back to the kitchen to clean up later. When he came back into the room, he found Elphaba going through a pile of papers that had been on the floor.

She looked up and flushed a little.

"I'm sorry," she apologised, quickly piling the papers on top of one another again and pushing them aside. "I didn't mean to snoop around…"

"It's fine," he assured her, leaning against the wall. "It's just… something I've been working on."

"Music," she stated, and he nodded.

"Yeah. My parents taught me how to play and write music when I was still very young," he explained. "I've always loved it. Recently I haven't done much with it – for the past few years, I mean… and now I found some old things I wrote once and I really wanted to go back to writing my own songs. I've been working on a particular song for the past weeks, but…" He trailed off.

Elphaba skimmed through the pages, looking impressed. "Will you play it for me?" she asked him.

He took his guitar from a corner and fidgeted with the strings a little before striking a chord. He played the first verse and the chorus by heart, having been working on the song for so long already that he could probably play it in his sleep.

"This is really good, Yero," she said in surprise when he was done.

"Thanks." He sighed and put the guitar away, pushing his fingers through his hair. "My problem isn't really the music – it's the lyrics," he admitted. "But, well, I'll figure it out. I want to finish the song first and I'll worry about the lyrics afterwards."

Elphaba smiled and got up to place the pages on his desk. On her way back, the photograph on his mantelpiece caught her eye and she approached it, studying the person in it with her head slightly tilted to the side.

Fiyero, realising what she was looking at, swallowed.

She half-turned to look at him and gave him a small smile before turning back to the picture. She pointed at it. "Someone you are close to?"

He nodded, the large lump in his throat preventing him from speaking.

Elphaba just smiled softly. "She's beautiful," she commented a little sadly.

She _was _beautiful. Shiny, copper-coloured hair that fell in thick waves to her shoulders. Rosy lips, peachy skin with a vague hint of freckles on and around her nose. She had a healthy red glow on her cheeks and her full lips were curled in a smile, hazel eyes sparkling as she looked straight at the camera. Elphaba wondered who this girl was, but something in Fiyero's eyes kept her from asking.

Instead, she turned to face him again, deciding it was time for her to leave.

"Thank you," she said sincerely. "For letting me stay over and taking care of me."

He found his voice again, the pressure in his chest lifting a little now that Elphaba's attention was not on the photo anymore.

"Anytime," he said.

She hesitated for a moment; then she gave him a brief, tentative hug. "Well… I'll go back to my own room now, then."

"I'll walk you," he offered, but she shook her head.

"I'm fine," she said. "It's okay."

Normally, he would have insisted on taking her home; but for some reason, her interest in Aliyra had thrown him. And so he just nodded wordlessly and watched as she grabbed her now-dry, but filthy, dress and her bag, promised him to return his own clothes to him later, and left the room.

* * *

"Elphie!" Galinda cried, leaping up and hurrying towards her roommate to take her bag and dress from her and all but drag her over to her own bed, sitting her down. "I can't believe that Avaric actually threw you in the canal! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," said Elphaba, but the blonde just cast her a suspicious look before taking the dress into the bathroom to wash it. She came out some time later and immediately set to moving around the room, fetching Elphaba one of the green girl's own nightgowns and urging her to change and go to bed.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Glin," she said patiently. "You're very sweet, but I just woke up. I don't need to go to bed again. I'm feeling fine, really. Fiyero made sure of that."

Galinda squealed. "Oh, Fiyero! I'm so glad he found you, Elphie! You have no idea how worrified I was when Boq appeared at the door last night and told me you had been thrown into the canal by Avaric and his friends and that Fiyero had only barely saved you from drowning to death! You could have been deadified, Elphie!"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow sceptically. "Is that what Boq said?"

"Not exactly," Galinda admitted, "but, well, it's true, isn't it?"

"It's not that big of a deal, Galinda, really," Elphaba tried to convince her friend. "Avaric tried to get back at me by tossing me in Suicide Canal and Fiyero got me out. That's all. I didn't almost drown or almost die. I'm _fine_."

Galinda huffed. "I don't believe that for a clock-tick."

Elphaba opened her mouth to say something, but just then, there came a knock on the door and Galinda went to open it.

Nessa wheeled herself in, closely followed by Boq.

"Fabala!" she exclaimed the moment she laid eyes on her sister, and she quickly moved forward to hug the green girl. "Oh, thank goodness!"

Elphaba glared at Galinda. "You just _had _to make a fuss over all this, didn't you?"

"I was worried!" the blonde protested. "And Nessa is your sister – I thought she should know!"

"I'm fine, Nessie," Elphaba tried to reassure the younger girl. "Really," she added when she saw the unconvinced look on Nessarose's face.

"Fiyero took care of her," Galinda informed the other two, at which Boq looked relieved and Nessa frowned slightly.

"He didn't do anything inappropriate, did he, Fabala?" she asked her sister, who rolled her eyes.

"No, Nessa," the green girl replied patiently. "He was a perfect gentleman."

Nessarose nodded. "Good. Because it's hardly proper for a girl to stay over in a boy's room, and though I understand that these were special circumstances, I still don't think –"

"Alright, so shall we go and get a drink somewhere?" Elphaba interrupted the wheelchair-bound girl. "Because I could really, _really _use a cup of coffee."

"Elphie –" Galinda began, but a glare from her roommate cut her off.

"I'm just going to change into my own clothes," Elphaba announced, rising to her feet. "Galinda and I will meet you two at the Primrose Café at eleven."

Galinda, Boq and Nessa started talking at the same time.

"Elphie, don't you think –"

"Maybe it would be better for you to –"

"Fabala, are you sure that –"

"Goodbye, Boq," Elphaba said, emphasising every syllable and accompanying her words with a pointed look. "Goodbye, Nessa."

Nessa closed her mouth and turned around to leave with a huff. Boq cast another slightly worried glance over his shoulder, but then he followed his girlfriend.

Galinda shook her head. "Elphie –"

Elphaba held up a hand to silence her. "Not another word," she warned the blonde.

Galinda obediently sat down on her bed in silence as Elphaba grabbed a dress from her closet and went into the bathroom to change. She washed up, brushed her teeth and combed her hair, then changed into her black frock and came back out. "Ready?"

Galinda eyed her accusingly. "You don't listen to my fashion advice at all, do you?" she demanded.

Elphaba grinned at her. "Of course not." Mostly in an attempt to annoy Galinda even further, she then pulled back her hair and started braiding it, knowing how much Galinda hated it that way.

"Oh, no, you don't!" the blonde cried, jumping up and nearly attacking her roommate as she quickly pulled Elphaba's hair loose again. "If you pick the dress, then I pick the rest."

She quickly pinned Elphaba's hair up in a high ponytail with a silver hair clasp and then pulled out a pair of silver ballet flats to match the hair clasp.

"No protesting," she said before Elphaba could even open her mouth to say anything. "They're not pink and they don't have heels, so I think I compromised enough already. They're really comfy, Elphie, I promise. Just please, _please _don't make me look at you wearing those horrendible boots," she almost begged her friend. "I can't _stand _them."

Elphaba grumbled, but gave in. "Fine," she said, slipping into the ballerina shoes. "Just this once. But tomorrow I'm going to braid my hair and wear my glasses, along with my hated black boots and the ugliest and most unfashionable frock I can possibly find in my closet."

Galinda crossed her arms. "In that case I'm going to skip class tomorrow so that I won't have to look at you," she declared.

Elphaba grinned, knowing her friend would probably do it, too. "Sweet Oz, Galinda."

Galinda stuck out her tongue and linked her arm with Elphaba's. "Come on, let's go," she said. "I could use some coffee myself. I barely slept at all last night, I was so worried about you! Ooh!" Her eyes lit up. "Maybe you and I, and Boq and Nessa, can devise a plan together to get back at Avaric!" She squealed and jumped up and down. "Isn't that the most scandalacious idea, Elphie? Maybe we can find his bottle of shampoo and replace the shampoo with bleach, so that his hair turns white!" She giggled. "Or maybe I could get Milla, Pfannee and Shenshen to work with me in order to embarrass him or something! I mean, the girls adore Avaric, but he constantly cheats on them with everyone – I bet they'd like to teach him a lesson! Or maybe we'll just get Fiyero to punch him, that would do it, too…"

"Galinda," said Elphaba as they made their way outside and into the sunshine. "We're not going to punish Avaric."

"What?" Galinda stopped walking, a horrified expression on her face as she looked at Elphaba. "What do you mean, we're not going to punish Avaric?"

"That would only make it worse," Elphaba told her. "And besides, no matter how nice it is of you to want to stand up for me, you really don't have to," she added. "I'm fine on my own."

"Oh, not _this _again!" Galinda complained as she grabbed Elphaba's arm and dragged her to the Primrose Café. "Just shut up, Elphie, I'm not even going to listen to this! We're your friends and that's it." She sniffed. "But fine, whatever you want. I'll just make a plan with Nessa, Boq and Fiyero, then," she decided. "I bet _they _will be on my side."

Elphaba feared that she was right.


	9. Payback and bets

**AN: Yep, Avaric should die. Yep, Nessarose is pretty horrible. Yep, Fiyeraba is cute. Yep, I love Galinda saying 'deadified', too.**

**18lzytwner: Because university means Morrible, and I wouldn't want to tell Her Fishness, either? :P No, they could do that, but somehow I feel like they wouldn't - because Elphie just wants to let it go and the others are too angry to think about this properly. Something like that.**

**Moreanswers24: I agree with your idea completely, bring it on! :D Also, interesting theory about Aliyra...**

**PocketSevens: Thank you so much! I was worried alright, so I'm really happy I made it!**

**No Fiyeraba yet. Patience, my friends, patience...**

* * *

**Chapter 9. Payback and bets**

When Elphaba turned up in class a few days later, only to find Galinda sitting with Milla, Pfannee, and Shenshen, she was slightly wary; and when she realised that the four girls were all giggling and whispering together, she became downright suspicious.

"What are they up to?" she asked Boq and Nessarose when she sat down in her usual spot.

Boq shook his head and Nessa shrugged.

"I have no idea," she said, "but I doubt it's anything good."

"Well, it's Galinda," Boq reminded her. "I don't trust those other girls any farther than I can throw them, but Galinda would never betray us or pull a prank on us, would she?"

"Probably not," Nessarose agreed, "but I still think it's strange."

"It is." Elphaba stared at her blonde roommate, wondering what was going on. "She has barely even looked at her former posse anymore since she befriended us."

Boq shrugged. "Maybe she missed them," he said. "She's been spending more time with them for the past couple of days already."

"Yeah, maybe," Elphaba said slowly, but she didn't really believe that. She kept on watching the four girls until the professor came in and cleared his throat to demand the class's attention.

She wasn't even sure why it worried her so much, but she couldn't help but think about it all the time. What if Galinda had decided she liked those popular society girls better than her green roommate after all? Honestly, she couldn't really blame the blonde – Elphaba was, after all, hardly someone a girl like Galinda would deem appropriate to socialise with. Maybe Galinda had finally come to her senses and seen Elphaba for what she really was, the dark-haired girl couldn't help but think wryly.

When class was over and Elphaba walked Nessarose to her next lecture, Galinda caught up with them and linked her arm with her roommate's.

"Good news," she said, beaming at the Thropp sisters. "Elphaba has been avengerated!"

Nessarose frowned uncertainly, and Elphaba translated, "Avenged."

"Ah." Nessa nodded, but then frowned again. "Wait. What?"

"Yes, exactly," Elphaba said, looking at her friend. "What?"

Galinda grinned widely at them both. "I told you, Elphie," she gushed, "I told you that we would get back at Avaric for you, and we did! Oz, you're not going to believe what Shenshen did!" She burst out in a fit of giggles. "You're going to love this!"

Nessarose looked disapproving. "You did not pull a prank on him, did you?"

"Maybe." Galinda shrugged. "He deserved it, Nessa. He tried to drown your sister!"

Elphaba cast her eyes heavenward. "For the last time," she said in exasperation, "he did not try to –"

"Oh, sweet Oz!" Nessa suddenly exclaimed, and Elphaba fell silent immediately.

Galinda followed the younger girl's gaze and burst out in a fresh wave of giggles. "Oh my Oz!" she cried, nearly tearing up with laughter. "This is even better than I had imagined it to be!"

Elphaba could only stare at Avaric wide-eyed, not believing what she was seeing.

When he caught sight of her, he stalked over to where she was standing, his face murderous. Every student on campus stopped to gape at him, whispering or pointing, and most of them were laughing, too.

He stopped in front of Elphaba, who held up both hands and, trying her hardest not to laugh, said, "I swear to Oz it wasn't me."

"It wasn't," Galinda agreed cheerfully. "But I'm not going to tell you who it was, Avvy."

He glared at the blonde. "You think this is very funny, don't you?" he growled.

"No," Galinda said cheerfully. "Not _very _funny." She burst out in a fresh wave of giggles.

"Who did this?" Avaric demanded.

Galinda shook her head. "I'm not telling you," she said brightly. "Let's just say that you have made a lot of enemies here, Avaric. Well, okay, not _enemies_," she conceded, "but people that would do something like _this_," she nodded at him, "to get back at you." She smirked. "Maybe this will teach you a lesson about how to treat people. See, it's not nice to call them names," she started counting on her fingers, "or pull pranks on them, or punch them in the face, or sleep with them and then dump them, or cheat on them, or throw them into an Oz-damned _canal_…"

"I get it!" he barked at her before stomping off again. Nessarose and Elphaba both gaped after him, mouths slightly open.

Then Nessa let out a giggle.

"I know it's not proper to laugh at people," she said apologetically, trying to hide her smile with her hand, "and I must say that I do not exactly _approve_ of all this, but…" Her smile widened. "This is just… priceless."

Galinda giggled and patted the girl's head. "Exactly. I knew even you would appreciate it." She looked at Elphaba expectantly. "So, what do you think?" she asked excitedly.

Elphaba opened and closed her mouth a few times. "You…" She shook her head. "What did you _do_?!"

Galinda giggled once more. "I made a potion during Sorcery the other day," she said smugly. "One that causes people's hair to fall out. I gave it to Shenshen, who pretended to let Avaric seduce her so that he took her to his room, and she then dumped it in his shampoo bottle." She smirked. "It was Fiyero's idea, and I executed it with Milla, Shenshen, and Pfannee," she said proudly. "Don't you think it's _perfect_? I think he looks much better without hair."

Nessa laughed. "He kind of does," she admitted.

Elphaba was frozen in place, both shocked and touched at her friend's admission. She couldn't believe Galinda had done all this, gone through so much trouble… for her. She felt like kicking herself. How could she even have thought for the briefest moment that Galinda didn't want to be her friend anymore? The blonde had just been off doing _this_ – punishing Avaric for what he had done to Elphaba.

"Glin," she said, her voice sounding a little choked. She squeezed her roommate's arm tightly. "You are the best friend ever."

Galinda smiled and threw her arms around her friend in a fierce hug. "Oh, I love you, too, Elphie!" she gushed, planting a kiss on the green girl's cheek. "I'm glad you appreciatify it!"

Elphaba couldn't stop thinking about it all day; and when Fiyero dropped down in his seat next to her during History later that afternoon, she looked at him.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her when she kept on staring at him for a long while.

She shook her head in an attempt to clear it and forced a smile. "Nothing," she said. "Just…" She blushed a little. "Thank you for sticking up for me."

He instantly knew what she meant. "The whole plan to get back at Avaric?" he guessed. He gave her a lopsided grin. "You're welcome, but honestly, I didn't do much. I just came up with the plan. Galinda is the one who actually did everything."

"Still," she said softly. "Not many people stood up for me in my life."

He smiled at her. "It's what friends do."

She returned the smile.

* * *

Five years.

Fiyero only realised it when he had already woken up and taken a shower, preparing for the day. He was just searching for his shoes, ready to go out and get himself some breakfast before running off to class, when his eye fell upon the photograph on the mantelpiece again… and then it dawned on him.

It had been five years. Five years ago on this very day. It made him swallow. It seemed so much longer and so much shorter at the same time.

He looked at the picture, stared into her hazel eyes for what seemed like an eternity, but of course it was not the same. It was a beautiful picture, yes; but it was hardly comparable to the real thing. Staring at her eyes on a photo was nothing compared to looking into her actual eyes – something he had loved to do and could now never do again.

He shook his head and told himself to get over it. He had wasted years of his life being an idiot. Now, it was time to start over. He would try his best to drop the act and be himself again, something he had denied himself and the people around him for too long already. And it wasn't until Elphaba had called him out on it that he had realised what exactly he was doing.

Elphaba, he recognised, had been a great influence on him. First he had thought that was because she resembled Aliyra so much. Then he'd thought it to be because she saw through his façade and was able to look at the real Fiyero, the one underneath all the drinking and partying.

And then, that day with the Lion Cub when she had touched his hand, a new thought had crossed his mind. The thought that the reason why she was such a good influence on him was because maybe, just maybe, he may or may not be the slightest, tiniest little bit head-over-heels in love with the green girl.

That, of course, had scared the wits out of him to the point where he had basically ignored Elphaba for nearly a week as he tried to sort out his feelings regarding her, but he hadn't really made any progress.

And then he had rescued her from Suicide Canal. He had carried her back to his dorm room and he had looked at her, watched the flutter of her eyelids and felt her clinging to him as he carried her through the rain, heard the slight catch in her voice when she had apologised to him… and then it had struck him like a bolt of lightning and he didn't know why he had even doubted it for a clock-tick.

He loved Elphaba Thropp.

And he couldn't do anything about it.

For so many reasons, he could not make a move. He'd scare her away, for one. She'd push him away and not want to have anything to do with him ever again, and he didn't want to lose her friendship. She meant too much to him.

Maybe she wouldn't return his feelings. Could he handle that? Could he deal with her rejecting him?

And then, of course, there was Aliyra. Was he ready for this? He wasn't sure. He wasn't even sure he loved Elphaba for the right reasons.

And so he had decided that they should just be friends.

But it was times like these, when he was sitting right next to her and watching her from the corner of his eyes, that he found that to be most difficult.

She was just so pretty. There was nothing about her that he did not find gorgeous, or graceful, or admirable, or interesting. Right now, for example, she was hunched over her Life Sciences book, studying. Most people found her glasses dreary; he thought they made her look even smarter than usual. Galinda always insisted Elphaba wear her hair down, but Fiyero found that there was something good about her wearing it up, as well, because now he had a great view of the elegant curve of her neck as she tilted her head slightly to the side, furrowing her brow as she tried to work out a difficult problem. Her hair was being held up in a bun by a couple of pencils she had stabbed into it and she had a look of utter concentration on her face that Fiyero found kind of adorable.

He was jolted from his thoughts as she poked his hand with a pencil. "Where are you with your head?" she wanted to know.

He gave her a sheepish grin, but did not answer.

She rolled her eyes and pointed at the book in front of him. "_There _is your Politics book, Fiyero. Can't you at least _try _to concentrate?"

"I am trying!" he protested. "I'm just… failing." He sighed.

She smiled at him encouragingly, showing a flash of her pearly white teeth. "You shouldn't put yourself down like that, Fiyero." She squeezed his arm. "You can do it, I know you can. You just have to apply yourself."

"I'm trying," he said again, tearing his gaze away from her mouth to look at her – her _eyes _– unhappily. "It's just so hard."

She gave him a long, appraising look. Then she sat up a little and removed her glasses.

"You know what?" she said. "We still have a few weeks until midterms. I'll help you. How does that sound?"

"Boring," he replied truthfully.

She whacked his arm with her notebook.

"I'm serious, Fiyero," she chided him. "If you don't study, you'll fail. If you fail, you'll get flunked out. Is that what you want?"

He sighed. "Not really," he admitted.

_Starting over,_ he reminded himself. _No more partying and hanging around with girls and getting kicked out of universities. You're going to be the real you again and you're going to make everyone proud. Yourself, your parents, and Elphaba._

She was still looking at him expectantly, so he offered her a weak smile. "I think that might be a good idea," he relented. "You helping me, I mean. Thanks for the offer."

She smiled again and patted his head as if he were a puppy. "That's a good Fifi," she teased him. "Alright, then. I'm just going to finish my own work now, but I'll meet you in the library tomorrow after class?"

"Sure," he said, not yet knowing how much hard work the next few weeks would prove to be.

* * *

"You're not trying."

"I am trying!" he cried indignantly. "I really am!"

She shook her head. "You're not," she accused him. "I know what it looks like when you're trying, and this is not you trying, Fiyero. This," she tapped his notebook with her pencil, indicating all the useless doodles he had drawn in there during the past minutes, "is you fooling around."

"Fabala, don't be so hard on him," said Nessarose, who was sitting at the table next to Elphaba and Fiyero's with Boq. "You've been pushing him to his very limits for weeks already."

"I wouldn't push him if I didn't think he was capable of doing it," Elphaba insisted. She looked at Fiyero. "I know you can do this, Yero," she said, softening a little. "You're much smarter than you think you are and capable of so much more than you've let on until now."

He shook his head miserably. "I don't think I am," he said, hanging his head a little. "I mean… the highest mark I've ever gotten for anything was a 64. Out of a _hundred_. What if I'm just too stupid?"

"You're not," she said with absolute certainty. Her dark brown eyes burning with intensity, she looked at him. "I think," she said, "that if you try hard, you could get a score of 90 or higher."

He snorted a laugh. "Yeah, right," he said, amused. "Fae, that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"Let's make it a bet," she suggested.

He thought about that for a moment, then nodded.

"Okay," he said. "If I score 90 or higher on even oneof my midterms, you win."

She raised one eyebrow. "And then what?"

He winked at her. "That's up to you to decide."

She rolled her eyes. "And if youwin?" she asked him.

In a heartbeat, he made a decision.

"I'm going to take you out for dinner after Lurlinemas break," he informed her, "to thank you for your help."

She rolled her eyes again, but she was blushing slightly. "Yero…"

He held up one hand. "That's not the reward," he said sternly. "I'm going to take you out regardless of whether I win the bet or not, because I want to do something for you in return. If I win the bet, however, then I get to pay for all of it and _you _will dress up and let Galinda give you a makeover, because if I win, we'll be going somewhere fancy. And you," he finished smugly, "will not be allowed to complain about _any _of it."

She was scowling. "That doesn't seem fair to me," she pointed out. "If you win, you have to pay for an expensive restaurant? How is that in your advantage?"

He grinned at her. "Trust me," he said. "It is."

Nessarose and Boq were watching the whole exchange with interest.

"Do we have a deal?" he asked her.

Her scowl deepened, but she accepted his hand and shook it.

"Fine," she said. "There won't be a fancy dinner, anyway, because you're not winning this bet."

He snorted. "Oh, come on, Fae. Maybe if you'd said _80_ or higher, you would have stood a chance; but _90_? No way. Never."

She smiled knowingly. "We'll see." Then she punched him in the arm. "But you have to try your hardest, understood?"

He sighed and stared back down at his book like a disobedient little boy.

"Yes, Mummy."

* * *

**Favourite lines? :)**


	10. Letters

**AN: I'm glad most of you liked a bald Avaric... and your Aliyra theories are still interesting!**

**Azaisya: Your review left me in stitches! Though that is actually a pretty great idea... hm... I might use that sometime, if you wouldn't mind!**

**PocketSevens: That was one of the most hilarious reviews I have ever received xD.**

**Humole: The stabbing-pencils-into-a-bun thing Elphaba does is actually something I myself used to do when I still had waist-long hair, hihi. It started when I wanted to put my hair up but didn't have an elastic band, so I stuck in a few pens and pencils to make it stick :P. Also, yes, Lurlinemas is Ozian Christmas - it's from the Wicked book ;).**

**Furthermore, I just wanted to let you all know that my original story is almost finished! I passed the 100,000 word mark the other day, my friend is working on the cover, and I have created the account I will need for publishing... I'll let you all know when the big day arises! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 10. Letters**

_Dearest, darlingest Elphie,_

_I passed my midterms! Can you believe that? (I can just hear your voice in my head right now, making a sarcastic remark that no, you can't believe that, since I spent more time skipping class, shopping, and painting my nails pink than actually going to class or studying. What can I say? By now I know how your mind works.) Momsie and Popsicle are thrillified, of course, and so am I; they are taking me out for dinner tonight to celebrate, and next week we will all be attending a grand feast that one of the noblemen here in Gillikin is hosting – he is known all throughout the area for his parties, so I am really looking forward to it… but of course you don't really want to read about any of that, do you? Sometimes I wish you were just the tiniest bit more outgoing, Elphie. I'd love to tell you about all these parties._

_Also, I had the most wonderful Lurlinemas – I hope yours was good, too! I received some amazifying gifts from my friends and family – Momsie and Popsicle gave me this beautiful silver necklace with all these pink stones in it, with matching earrings and a bracelet, too! Really, it's too much, but they insisted. I love it, though. I'll be wearing it every day from now on!_

_How are you and Nessa doing? I hope you are having some fun as well, even though I know how much you hated going back to Munchkinland for the break. I'm not even going to ask if you passed your midterms, because I just know for certain that you did; but I would like to know how good your scores were so that I can tell everyone here about it and let them know how proud I am of my bestest friend Elphie who has probably topped the year! (Also, how did Nessa do on her midterms? I hope she, too, passed!)_

_Have you heard anything from Fiyero since you arrived back home? He promised me he'd write, but of course he hasn't. I haven't, either, so I suppose I can't really blame him, but still. I would love to know how _his _midterms went! Either way, it's going to be just thrillifying when I get back to Shiz – either I will get to help you dress up and look pretty for your dinner with Fiyero, or I will get to help you think of something you can make Fiyero do for losing the bet! I already have a few ideas, of course, but I'd like to hear what you think, first. (Okay, no, I'm too impatient. I was thinking you could make him wear pink nail polish, a blonde wig and a frilly dress to class one day. Or make him your personal slave for a week and he has to do everything you ask. Or have him buy something fancy and expensive for you, like a diamond necklace or your own carriage… or a castle or something.)_

_Anyways… enjoy the rest of your break, Elphie, and I'll see you in a few weeks!_

_Much love and hugs and kisses (even though I know you hate those),_

_Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands_

* * *

_Dear Fae,_

_My Lurlinemas was great, thanks for asking. Mum and Dad were happy to have the whole family together again. We didn't really do anything special, though there will be this huge banquet with a ball and whatnot for New Year's Eve… I'm already looking forward to it. (You do know that was meant sarcastically, right? I wasn't sure it'd come off right on paper.)_

_Congratulotions on having topped the year! Oz, Fae, how do you _do _that?! Never mind, I don't even want to know. I did know you could do it, though. I mean, you're the smartest person I know. You're amazing. Like I said, congratulotions – I'm happy for you. And congratulate Nessa for me, too! She can be proud of her results and I bet she's happy with her new dresses. (I'm not even going to mention the fact that your father bought her a whole new wardrobe as a reward for her doing well in school and he didn't even spare you a 'congratulotions' for topping the year. Okay, now I mentioned it, but still. I know you don't want to talk about it, but it doesn't sit right with me.)_

_I heard Galinda and Boq did well, too. I bet Galinda is going to want to celebrate once we get back… but then again, that girl doesn't need an excuse to celebrate – I'm pretty sure we're all doomed to have some 'fun time' with her after being apart for a couple of weeks, anyway._

_It's snowing here in the Vinkus. It's a really beautiful sight, the entire land covered in a white blanket. Does it even snow in Munchkinland? Have you ever even seen snow?_

_As for your question about my music: unfortunately I'm still stuck. I have all the music written now, but I'm having a hard time finding the right lyrics to go with it. What can I say? I've never been one for words. I prefer actions. (I'm amazed that you remembered, though. About my music, I mean. Most people don't even know I'm interested in music at all, let alone ask about it.)_

_I hope to hear from you soon!_

_Yours,_

_Fiyero_

* * *

_Dear Yero,_

_I won, didn't I? I KNEW IT. Now don't deny it – the fact that you talked about everyone's midterm results but your own in your last letter gave you away. You must have gotten your results at about the same time we did. If you had won the bet, I have no doubt that you would have told me (and spent the rest of your letter rubbing in the fact that you were right and I was wrong). The fact that you didn't, tells me enough. I WIN. Ha. I told you so!_

_Aside from the bet, though… you did great, Yero. I knew you had it in you. You just needed the motivation and the discipline to actually try your hardest, and it paid off. I bet your parents are very proud of you. I know I am, and you should be, too._

_Snow… lucky you. No, it does not snow in Munchkinland, though I did see snow in Gillikin once when Father took Nessa and me on a business trip there, when we were still very young. I loved it, even though Nessa was slightly afraid of it._

_I don't really believe the fact that you're not looking forward to a party. It's a party, after all, and you're Fiyero Tiggular. I'm sure you'll find a way to amuse yourself. All I'm doing on New Year's Eve is curl up in my room with a book, since I'll be home alone that night. Father is taking Nessa to a party in Munchkin City and he gave all the servants around here the night off, so I'll have the house to myself. I can't say I really mind, though. (And yes, I know the way my father treats me doesn't sit right with you. You made that clear at least a hundred times already. It almost makes me regret telling you about my father in the first place.)_

_Of course I remembered about your music! To me, it just proved again that I was right, you know, that day with the Lion Cub. There's much more to you than you let on back then and I'm glad you're showing it now. As for lyrics… is it still the same song you were struggling with back then? Because I've been thinking and I came up with something for the chorus. It's probably not much, but maybe it will get you back on the right track. I wrote it down on the note accompanying this letter – it's in the envelope. Like I said, it's probably not much, but… yeah. Feel free to burn it if you hate it._

_Only two more weeks to go! I can't wait to go back to Shiz – even though I know you probably beg to differ._

_Elphaba_

* * *

_Dear Glin,_

_I must say I'm impressed by your ability to predict what I am going to say even before I myself have had a chance to say it. You're right, though, so I won't repeat it. Instead I'll just say well done and I'm proud of you for passing everything! _

_If you must know: yes, I did top the year. I'm especially very proud of Nessa, though – she passed everything! I knew she could do it, even though she was sure she had failed at least one, and maybe even two, of her subjects. Father bought her some very expensive new dresses to reward her for it. None of them are really my style, but I'm sure you would love them._

_I'm not even going to respond to your remark about me having to be more outgoing and listening to stories about your parties. We both know that's never going to happen._

_Lurlinemas was alright, I guess. We didn't really do anything special. We had dinner, Father and I had bought Nessa some gifts, and that was it. Oh, and I took Nessa for a walk around town that evening. I don't normally love going into town, since it's not very exciting; but it looks beautiful on Lurlinemas Eve. Everything is decorated with Lurlinemas trees, garlands and coloured lights, with candles glowing everywhere you look… Nessa loved it. I bet you would have, too, had you been here._

_Yes, as a matter of fact, I did hear from Fiyero. Not too much – just a couple of letters we sent back and forth. We're not really discussing anything special, either. He tells me what he's doing, I tell him what I'm doing, which, honestly, really isn't much… and of course we discussed the bet. He still has to officially tell me his results, but I'm almost a hundred percent sure that I won and he scored over 90 for at least one of his midterms. I'm very proud of him. I bet no-one saw this coming back when he was still the scandalacious prince Fiyero Tiggular, known for throwing the most Oztastic parties and dating a new girl every week!_

_I think we need to have a serious talk about your idea of a reward for winning a bet, and mine._

_A kiss back (yes, I hate them, but since you love them, I'll indulge you – at least through this letter) from,_

_Elphaba_

* * *

_Dear Fae,_

_How is it that even through a letter, when I don't say a word and try so very hard to not give anything away, you manage to read my mind? Seriously, it's getting downright creepy now._

_Alright, then. I'll just come out and say it now: yes. Yes, you won. I have included a list of my midterm results – as you can see, I got the lowest score in History, 60 out of 100. As you can also see, you won the bet not by one subject, but two – I got 91 in Politics _and _93 in Life Sciences! _

_Honestly, though, I don't really care about winning or losing the bet. I'm just so happy that I finally really achieved something, you know? And I definitely made my parents proud, which is a good thing, too. I think after all these years, they kind of gave up on me. You should have seen their faces when I showed them my midterm results – they actually thought that Shiz had accidentally mixed up my results with someone else's, that's how incredulous they were! (Frankly, I felt a little offended.) It was really good to see them this way. I could tell that my dad was very proud of me, and Mum actually cried and then squeezed me to death in a hug Galinda would have been proud of._

_I don't think I'll ever say this enough, but thank you, Fae. No-one has ever had enough faith in me to believe that I was capable of even passing all my midterms at once, let alone with such great scores. It's all thanks to you (and even though I lost the bet, that dinner is still on. I want to thank you for everything you did for me)._

_And while I am at it… thank you for something else, too. Those song lyrics were amazing, Fae! Exactly what I was looking for. They fit the song perfectly. I didn't know you were so good at this! We should write a song together once – I think it could be brilliant! Will you help me with the lyrics for the rest of the song as well once we get back to Shiz?_

_That doesn't really sound like a nice way to spend New Year's Eve. I'd ask if your father didn't ask you to come along to that party, too, but we both know the answer to that, I think. (I'm sorry, I know you don't like me bringing that up all the time. I won't mention it again, okay? Please don't regret telling me – I'm really glad you did.)_

_Anyway, I suspect that even if he had asked you to come along, you'd have declined – we all know how much of a party animal you are, after all. Still, though, I don't really like the idea of you sitting at home all by yourself on a night like New Year's Eve. It's something you're supposed to celebrate with friends and/or family, not with a book and an empty house. I hope you haven't been too lonely. _

_If it's of any comfort: my own New Year's Eve was rather dreary as well. All these officials and noblemen and fancy people I had to talk to… if it weren't for the food, I'd have pretended to be sick or something, just to escape the whole ordeal; but then I would have missed out on the stew and the grilled meat and the soup and the most incredibly-tasting pie ever in existence, so…_

_I can't really say I look forward to going back to Shiz… well, I do, but not because of Shiz. I mean, I missed you, and am still missing you, a lot. All of you, I mean. I'd love to see you again. But Shiz of course also means classes, and _that _is something I am not really looking forward to, no. Especially since I know that now that you know you're right, you're probably going to be the strictest teacher known in Ozian history. Am I right? (No need to respond, that was rhetorical. We all know that I am always right.)_

_Anyways, the end of the break is drawing near – hang in there! Soon you'll be able to return to your books, and your classes, and your teachers, and your pink and fluffy dorm room… I'm already looking forward to seeing you again._

_Yours,_

_Fiyero_

* * *

**Theories? Predictions? Favourite lines?**


	11. Songs and studies

**AN: Hello once again! Funny how two of you immediately thought that Elphaba wouldn't be going back to Shiz... maybe you're subconsciously associating the letters Fae, Yero and Galinda wrote with the letters they wrote in _Yero My Hero_, after which Elphaba didn't come back? :P**

**And yes, I said pie again. Because I'm just evil like that. (No, frankly, I had all but forgotten it was even in this chapter, but it gave me the giggles once I read your reviews.)**

**Azaisya, I love you saying that, because 1) I quite liked the '...or a castle' line myself, and 2) I thought no-one would pick up on the 'yours' Fiyero kept signing his letters with, as opposed to Elphaba ^^.**

**PerlogAnnwyl: Keep guessing! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 11. Songs and studies**

"Elphie!" Galinda threw her arms around her roommate. "You're back! Just in time to help me unpack!"

"Hello to you, too," Elphaba said drily, hugging her roommate back briefly, "and _no_."

Galinda pouted. "But Elphie!"

Elphaba shook her head. "Sorry, Glin. I promised I'd help Nessa first, and then I'm going to find Fiyero," she said. "You know, to congratulate him on his results in person."

Galinda's face brightened. "Ooh, yes! His results! I still can't believe he actually passed _everything_ – and with such great scores, too!" She playfully nudged Elphaba's side. "You must be a very good influence on him, hmm?"

Elphaba flushed a little. "I don't know what you mean," she said dismissively.

Galinda giggled. "Sure you don't. Well, good luck with Nessa, then. Tell her I said hi. Shall we all meet for dinner tonight?"

"Sure," Elphaba agreed. "I'll be back before that, though. See you later." With a small wave, she left the room.

After she had helped Nessarose settle back in with Horrible Morrible, she went straight to the boys' dormitories and knocked on the door to Fiyero's suite. She could hear him rummaging around inside and then he opened the door, an irritated expression on his face. That expression soon turned into a smile, however, when he saw who it was.

"Hey," he greeted her, kissing her cheek before she could even register that that was what he was about to do. She blinked in surprise, but he didn't seem to notice. He all but dragged her inside. "I thought you were Boq," he admitted. "That Munchkin has been nagging me with questions about his relationship with Nessa ever since I got back. How are you? I missed you," he added.

"I'm fine," she said, ignoring that latter statement because it made her uncomfortable. She looked around. There were suitcases lying on the bed, unopened. Fiyero's guitar was leaning against the couch and there were notebooks and loose pages everywhere.

"What in Oz happened?" she demanded. "You only just got back and it looks like a bomb exploded in here!"

He gave her a sheepish grin. "I worked on the song at home," he explained, "but I had accidentally left part of the sheet music back here, so I couldn't finish it even after you sent me the lyrics… which I was really bummed about. So the moment I got back, I pulled out my sheet music and started finishing it." His eyes were shining. "It's not done yet, but almost. Would you like to hear it?"

"Of course!" she said, smiling at him.

He grabbed his guitar and she sank down onto the couch, watching him in interest as he started playing.

During the chorus, he sang the lyrics she had suggested to him in her letter; and she smiled and softly sang along. When he finished, he looked at her expectantly.

"What do you think?"

"It's wonderful," she said truthfully. "Really. It's perfect. And you play so well! I wish I could play an instrument," she added wistfully.

He beamed at her. "Will you help me finish it?" he asked her pleadingly. "I tried to come up with some lyrics myself, but, well… I'm not half as good at it as you are."

She rolled her eyes. "Yero –"

"Please?" he interjected, making big puppy eyes at her.

She hesitated for a moment, then caved. "Alright."

"Awesome!" He scooted closer to her, showing her the things he had already worked out and the ideas he'd had. She suggested some things herself, which they then tried out – Fiyero playing the guitar, Elphaba singing – and he wrote down the lyrics and changed some things in the sheet music, after which they started over again. They ended up spending the entire afternoon working on the song together and they didn't even realise it was that late until they heard the clock in the hallway chime seven times.

Elphaba's eyes widened. "Oh my Oz, is it that late already?" she said, shocked. She rose to her feet and turned to face Fiyero. "I promised Galinda we would all go and have dinner together tonight," she said apologetically. "She's probably waiting for me. Us. Though mostly me, I guess, since I told her I'd be back at our dorm room before dinner, and… oh, shiz."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Fiyero carefully placed his guitar back in its rightful spot before placing his hands on Elphaba's shoulders. "It's fine. Galinda will live," he told her. "Come on, I don't feel like changing clothes, anyway – let's just go. We'll pick Galinda up at your dorm room and meet Nessa and Boq… where?"

"We'll have to pick them up, too," said Elphaba, biting her lip worriedly. "Oz, Galinda is going to kill me."

"I'll go get Nessa and Boq," Fiyero promised, "and you can get Galinda, and then we'll meet in the courtyard and go into town together. Okay?"

She nodded and he squeezed her shoulders. "Remember," he said with a lopsided grin, "you can take Galinda."

She chuckled weakly.

"Unless she grabs a stiletto heel," Fiyero continued. "Then you'd better run."

Now she laughed out loud. "I'll keep that in mind." She turned and quickly hurried off.

* * *

Galinda turned out to still be getting ready, trying to match her shoes with the gems in her new necklace and earrings, and so she wasn't too upset that Elphaba had been gone for so long. When the green girl told her roommate apologetically that she had spent the entire afternoon with Fiyero, Galinda just smirked knowingly.

"Did you have a good time?" she asked innocently, putting in her earrings and slipping her feet into the high heels she'd picked out.

"Yes," said Elphaba, who was pulling her hair up into a high ponytail. "I did. We worked on his song together."

Galinda squealed. "He _sang _for you?!"

"He played the guitar," Elphaba corrected the blonde. She blushed a little. "I sang, though."

"Oh my Oz!" Galinda threw her arms around Elphaba. "I didn't even know you could sing, Elphie! You should sing for us all sometime!"

"No," Elphaba protested, but Galinda shushed her.

"We'll discuss this later," she decided. "Come on, Fiyero and the others are probably already waiting."

They ended up having a nice, quiet dinner with just the five of them, exchanging stories about their Lurlinemas break and what they had been up to.

"Hey, Fae?" Fiyero asked quietly when the others were all immersed in conversation.

She looked at him. "Yeah?"

"Will you come to my room again tomorrow?" he asked her. "To finish the song?"

She hesitated for a brief moment, unsure of whether that was a good idea or not. After the Lion Cub, and after he had saved her at Suicide Canal, something had changed between them. She could feel it and she knew he could, too. She wasn't sure what it meant, exactly; but it was making her nervous.

Yes, she'd had a great time that afternoon, but she wanted to keep herself from seeing more into it than there really was.

Nevertheless, when he turned large, pleading eyes on her and said, "Please?" she could only laugh and nod.

"Okay," she said.

He beamed at her and squeezed her arm happily.

"But we'll only spend half the day working on the song," she warned him. "The other half, we're going to study."

Fiyero made a face. "_What_?!"

The others overheard and Nessa laughed.

"Get used to it, Fiyero," she said. "There's no stopping Fabala when she's ready to get back to work."

"Elphie!" Galinda protested. "The first classes of the semester haven't even started!"

"No," Elphaba agreed. "But the first classes of the new semester will build on what we have already learnt in the previous semester, and so I want to repeat the study material we had to learn for midterms, in order to understand everything the professor will teach us this semester. And given the fact that Fiyero promised me he'd make an effort to actually pass everything this time, I'm going to get him to study with me again."

Fiyero moaned. "Oh, joy."

"_You _wanted to change," she pointed out to him and he sighed.

"True. Alright, then," he caved. "But…"

"Here it comes," Elphaba muttered under her breath. Boq grinned and Nessa laughed.

"…I'm still taking you out for dinner," Fiyero finished.

"Fine," Elphaba replied. "But I won the bet, so you don't get to take me anywhere fancy."

"Fine," he said gruffly. "Nothing fancy. But it won't just be the cafeteria or the Primrose Café, either. I'm taking you to a _real _restaurant."

"Fine," said Elphaba, crossing her arms. "But I'm not dressing up."

He scowled. "Fine."

Galinda, Nessa, and Boq watched them in amusement.

"So, Fabala," said Nessa curiously, "what are you planning on doing to Fiyero now that you've won the bet?"

Galinda giggled. "I have some ideas," she offered.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "No, Galinda," she said patiently, "I am not dressing him in drag, or having him buy me a diamond, or a castle, or making him go shopping with us and pay for everything."

Galinda opened her mouth to say something, but her roommate wasn't finished yet.

"I'm also not going to ask him to organise your wardrobe, clean up our room, pay for every meal for the next month or throw a party at the OzDust."

Nessa giggled. "It's clear who came up with all those ideas," she said.

"I just think we should get the most out of this!" Galinda defended herself.

"Um, hello?" Fiyero waved at them. "I'm right here, you know. I can hear you concocting your evil plans. And Galinda, I hate to disappoint you, but it's _Elphaba _I closed this bet with," he stressed. "So why would I organise _your _wardrobe?"

Galinda pouted. "Because I'm very nice?"

Everyone laughed.

"Don't worry," Elphaba said to Fiyero. "I'll think of something."

He gave her a lopsided grin. "I have no doubt you will," he said, eyes dancing. "I can't wait to see what you come up with."

Her cheeks were burning a little at the look in his eyes, but she managed to throw him an ominous look before she looked back at the food in front of her.

* * *

"Can we stop now?" Fiyero whined.

Elphaba cast a glance in his direction. "We'll take a break at six, Fiyero, I told you that," she said. "Just focus until then."

"But I've been focusing for _hours _already!"

She quirked an eyebrow.

"Okay, half an hour, then," Fiyero relented. "But still. For me, that's really long."

She sighed. "Look… maybe this isn't fair of me," she said, removing her glasses and pinching the bridge of her nose. "I mean… just because _I _want to prepare myself and repeat everything we've studied before the break, doesn't mean I have to make you do the same."

"I promised you I'd try, though," Fiyero said with a sigh. "And I really want to change," he added, earning himself a smile from her. He only now noticed that there was a dimple in her right cheek when she smiled.

"I know that," she said. "And you _are _trying. Your midterm results are a testimony of that." She shook her head. "But just because you promised you'd make an effort, doesn't mean you have to become a study freak like me," she said lightly. "I know I can be a little extreme sometimes. And as long as you'll pay attention in class and study seriously for your exams… I don't think it's fair of me to ask more of you."

She tilted her head a little to the side. "How about I'll go back to my own room to study," she suggested, "and you can go and do something fun. I'll ask Galinda to get me some dinner…"

"You don't have to go," he said hastily. "You can just stay here to study, I'll go have dinner with Boq and some other boys and I'll bring you something, too, and then we can work on the song again afterwards? I mean, it's still not finished…"

If he was completely honest, the song was all but finished. In fact, it could have been finished ages ago; but it was a good excuse to get Elphaba to come to his room and spend time with him, and so he tried to draw it out as long as possible, always finding excuses to work on it again, changing lyrics or chords or a little bit of the melody.

"Okay," Elphaba agreed easily. "If you don't mind me staying here…"

He shook his head. "Not at all." Feeling bold, he planted a kiss on her hair. "See you in a few hours."

"Okay," she repeated, already engrossed in her study materials again. Fiyero doubted if she'd even noticed what he did. He wasn't sure if he should be happy about that or not.

* * *

**You'll like the next chapter. It's got fluff :). Still not the fluff you're looking for - that will be Chapter 14 - but it's fluff nonetheless.**


	12. A slave for you

**AN: Patience, my friends, patience... also, why are you all thinking I'm going to do something horrible (or surprised about the fact that nothing horrible has happened yet)? I don't _always_ do horrible things. Jeez. (Though I currently am working on my next Wicked fic, which will be pretty horrible... and that's putting it mildly. Heheh.)**

**Broadwaygirl21: No, Glin and Yero are not dating ;) and no, sorry... see for yourself, Musicgal3's review for the chapter was longer than yours xD. I'm afraid my twin sis is very good at setting unbeatable records.**

**Musicgal3: I'm not telling any of you anything about theories being right or wrong - you'll just have to wait and see... ^^**

**PerlogAnnwyl: That cracked me up xD.**

**Oh, whoops, I almost forgot: this chapter is dedicated to the 200th (!) reviewer of this story... *drumroll*... Queen Faeley! :D Good to hear from you again! You can pick out any sort of PIE as a reward! :D *cackles***

* * *

**Chapter 12. A slave for you**

He kept thinking about her all throughout dinner, still unsure of his feelings regarding her… and of hers regarding him. No matter how much he thought about it, analysing every feeling and thought he had about her, he just couldn't seem to figure it out; and that fact bothered him to no end. If he didn't even know what he was feeling, then how could he ever know if he should make a move or not?

By the time he returned later that night, carrying a small bag with dinner for Elphaba, his head hurt from all the worrying he'd been doing. He sighed as he pulled his key from his pocket and unlocked the door. He'd love to spend the rest of the night with Elphaba, but he didn't really have the energy to work on his song anymore. Maybe he should just go to bed instead… or maybe she'd be willing to stay and they could just do nothing together.

He was surprised to find the lights in his room off, and he called her name.

"Elphaba?"

No response. He lit a lamp on a side table and placed the bag next to it. Then he turned around to look for her.

He smiled when he realised she was still in the same position she'd been in before – sitting at his desk, glasses perched on her nose, books and notes scattered all across the surface. Somewhere during her studying, she must have fallen asleep, because her cheek was resting on her book and her eyes were closed.

He shook his head and approached her, carefully removing the glasses from her face. She stirred and muttered something unintelligible, but didn't wake up.

"Fae?" he whispered, stroking some hair away from her face. "Hey. Wake up, you. This is no place to sleep." His hand cupped her shoulder and he shook it gently, but she just swatted at him, trying to brush him off.

"Go away."

"Are you awake?"

She groaned. "No."

He chuckled softly and rubbed her upper back. When he felt how tense the muscles there were, he frowned.

"You know," he said, rubbing the spot between her shoulder blades, "it's not healthy to be hunched over a book or a stack of notes like this all the time. It's bad for your back. Oz, Fae, it's like I'm touching a rock here."

She grumbled something under her breath. "Studying is important."

"I know it is, but you should take care of yourself better. Here." He took her arm and helped her up. Still half asleep, she allowed him to all but drag her over to his bed. She flopped down onto her stomach, her face buried in a pillow, and he settled next to her. Then he swung one leg over her, straddling her back.

She immediately attempted to shoot up. "Fiyero, what in Oz –" she began angrily, but he interrupted her.

"Trust me?"

She hesitated for a long moment. Then she slowly lay back down.

He smiled and started gently rubbing her shoulders, trying to ease the tension from her muscles.

She buried her face in the pillow again and moaned softly. "Okay, I'll trust you from now on," she said, heaving a content sigh.

He chuckled, slipping his fingers into the back of her dress to gain better access to her neck and shoulders. "I should hope so." His fingers found a tight knot in her right shoulder and he shook his head. "Sweet Oz, Elphaba. What do you do to ruin your back like this?"

"Study," she said, her voice muffled by the pillow. "And like I said, studying is important."

"Maybe," he acknowledged. "But still." He worked out the knot in her shoulder, earning himself another happy sigh from the girl beneath him. He stopped.

She immediately started whining. "Fiyero…"

"I'm not doing this for free," he informed her, grinning. "I want something in return."

She groaned and dropped her head back to the pillow. "Like what?"

His grin widened as he tried to think of something – if he could make Elphaba do anything he wanted, he had to think this through carefully – but then she suddenly raised her head, a triumphant look on her face.

"You're not getting anything in return," she said smugly, "because you still owe me."

He blinked at her, taken aback.

"The bet," she reminded him. "This is what I get for winning."

"A massage?"

"A personal masseuse slave," she corrected him with a wicked grin, "for the next month."

"Week," he argued. "A month is too long for just winning a bet."

"Two weeks, then," she conceded. "Deal?"

He smirked and softly stroked the skin of her upper back for a moment before continuing to rub her tense muscles. "Deal."

In reality, he would have agreed on being her personal masseuse slave for the rest of her life if she wanted him to; but he didn't want to seem _too_ eager.

He kept on massaging her back, trying to be as thorough as possible. He'd prefer to have her take off her blouse to give him better access, but he didn't want to push his luck and so he settled for merely slipping his hands underneath the piece of cloth to reach her back. She didn't even protest, just murmured a quiet encouragement.

By the time he was done, she had fallen asleep again, looking relaxed and peaceful.

He carefully swung his leg back over her and sat down next to her, crossing his legs, to watch her sleep. Her face was smooth and free of the frown she often wore when awake. There was even a small smile curling her lips. He watched her, and he realised with a sinking feeling that it was getting harder and harder to deny it. Right reasons or no, he could no longer pretend that he wasn't in love with her… and he had to do something about it, too, before he would burst. One more of those back massages and he was sure he would explode.

Maybe it was time for him to face the music and tell her how he felt.

But no. He couldn't.

Could he?

He looked at the photograph on the mantelpiece again. Aliyra was smiling at him, eyes shining.

"What do you think I should do?" he asked her. "Should I tell her?"

She just kept on smiling at him, not pulling a muscle; and yet he knew what her answer would be.

_No matter what happens, Fiyero… I want you to be happy._

He felt a lump in his throat at the memory, but at the same time, he felt an odd sort of relief. Maybe Aliyra had been right and he really could move on. It had been long enough by now. It was time for him to grow up and go on with his life.

_Tomorrow_, he promised himself. _Tomorrow, when I take her out for what she thinks is a 'thank you' dinner… then I'll tell her._

For now, he just stroked her cheek. After all this time, he found that he was still slightly startled by the electricity that seemed to shoot through him at the slightest touch of his skin against hers. Her skin was so soft, too…

He shook it off. "Fae?"

Her eyes slowly opened, still foggy with sleep as they focused on him.

He smiled at her. "I wouldn't mind you spending the night here," he said, "but I think _you _would, and I think Galinda would, too."

"Mm." She turned away from him, hugging the pillow. "Let her mind, then. Or send Boq."

"You should go home," he persisted.

She cast a glare over her shoulder. "I'm too comfortable," she murmured. "Goodnight, Fiyero."

He chuckled. "You still have to eat, too."

She sighed and finally rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling in exasperation. "You're really not going to let me sleep?"

He smiled apologetically. "No."

She grumbled and sat up. "Fine, then." She smoothed out her hair, then rose to her feet to grab the dinner Fiyero had brought her. She ate it quickly as he gathered her notes and books and put them back into her bag for her. When she was done, he silently handed her the bag, and she kissed his cheek in thanks.

"I'll see you tomorrow in class," she said, slipping out of the door. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." He stayed in the doorway, watching her walk away until she turned a corner and disappeared from sight. Then he quietly closed the door.

* * *

"Elphie," Galinda said firmly, "you can _not_ go out wearing…" She wrinkled her nose and waved at Elphaba's frock. "_That_."

Elphaba looked down at the dress. "But it's the nicest one I own!" she protested.

Galinda shook her head and patted her roommate's arm sympathetically. "Now," she said, "I know we all agreed that you didn't have to dress up for this date, but –"

"It's not a date," Elphaba interrupted her. "It's just him taking me out for a 'thank you' dinner."

"Right." The blonde girl took Elphaba's hands and sat her down on the pink-covered bed. "So you don't have to dress up," she continued. "But Elphie, _please _let me help you. Please. Nothing extreme, I promise. I'll just make sure you look nice, that is all."

Elphaba hesitated.

"Nothing fancy," Galinda promised. "No pink, no sparkles, nothing. No high heels and no hours of fiddling with your hair."

"And no make-up," Elphaba added.

"Except for a tiny little bit of eyeliner?" Galinda asked hopefully.

"Fine," her friend agreed.

"And mascara?"

Elphaba sighed and nodded.

"Lipstick?"

"You're pushing your luck, Galinda."

"Blush? Please, Elphie?"

The green girl just narrowed her eyes and Galinda gave her a quick smile. "Right. Okay. Just eyeliner and mascara, I promise," she said solemnly. "Will you let me help you get ready, then?"

"I'm going to regret this," said Elphaba with a sigh, "but yes, Glin, I'll let you help me."

The blonde squealed so loudly Elphaba had to cover her ears with her hands. "Yay! Ooh, Oz, I know exactly what I'm going to do with you!" She jumped up and down. "Okay, okay, let's not get too excited," she said, giggling. "We only have about an hour left, so… hmm." She tilted her head a little to the side, studying Elphaba.

"First we need to get rid of that frock," she decided. Her eyes lit up. "And I have just the dress for you to wear."

Much to Elphaba's surprise, instead of running to her own wardrobe, Galinda moved over to her roommate's. She started rummaging through the dark blue and black articles of clothing and finally pulled out a black dress.

"Is that the dress I wore to Pfannee's party?" Elphaba asked curiously and her roommate nodded.

"Yes. It's black, and not frilly, and yet it's very classy and it looks beautiful on you," she declared.

Elphaba sighed, but conceded. "Alright."

"Go get dressed," Galinda spurred her on, "and then I'll find everything we need to tick off the next items on the list. Let's see, we need shoes – would you agree on wearing those silver ballet flats I let you borrow from me the other day?"

"Um… sure," Elphaba said, feeling a little overwhelmed already.

Her friend pushed her into the bathroom as she continued to ramble. "And then I'll get the eyeliner and mascara, and we have to figure out what we're going to do with your hair… do you want to wear it up or down? I won't let you wear it in a braid, Elphie, you know that… but maybe a nice hair clasp? Or a ribbon in your hair? Or a hair band… Let me think…"

When Fiyero came to pick the young witch up for dinner about an hour later, Galinda was still working on her roommate. He heard a muffled, "Just a clock-tick!", that sounded like the blonde had something in her mouth.

"Glin, spit out those hairpins before you choke on them," he heard Elphaba order sternly from within the room and he smiled.

A heavy sigh sounded. "Fine."

"Am I done now?"

"Not yet." There was some more noise, sounding like Galinda was rummaging through a pile of things – probably her make-up supply or her box with hair decorations – and then a triumphant, "There! All finished! Oh, Elphie, you look so beautiful!"

A derisive snort from the other side of the door. "Of course I do."

Galinda huffed. "Shut up, Elphie. You do. I bet Fiyero would agree with me."

The door suddenly flew open and Elphaba was standing there. She was wearing the short, black dress Galinda had made her buy for Pfannee's party, combined with a pair of silver ballet flats and a matching silver hair band that kept her long, ebony hair out of her face. Galinda had applied just a touch of make-up to her eyes, making them look even larger than usual.

He gawked at her for a long time and Galinda giggled. "Fiyero definishly agrees with me," she said smugly.

Elphaba blushed. "Do you really?" she asked him uncertainly.

"Oh yes," he breathed, unable to take his eyes off her. "You look beautiful, Fae."

Her blush deepened.

He shook his head and offered her his arm. "Shall we go?"

She nodded and linked their arms together as they walked off.

Galinda waved at them from the doorway. "Have fun!"

"I'm glad she didn't get to you any more than she did," Fiyero said with a small laugh. "I mean… I won't say I don't love seeing you in slightly more flattering dresses and with your hair down, but I meant what I said before. You don't need any of that."

Her blush deepened, and he decided to change the subject, not wanting her to feel uncomfortable.

"So how is the studying going?"

She smirked at him. "Nice attempt to change the subject, Yero," she said, amused, "but not very subtle. You'd never voluntarily talk about studying."

He laughed again. "True. Okay, then. How are _you _doing?"

"I'm fine," she said, after which she added teasingly, "The studying is going _great_," which made him laugh again.

"So where are we going?" she asked him as they left the building and turned a corner.

"I was thinking of taking you to Arctica," he said. "You know, that new restaurant in town? It opened a couple of weeks ago."

"Okay," she complied a little hesitantly. "But… isn't that rather fancy?"

"No," he said a little too quickly.

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Okay, maybe a little," he conceded with a sheepish smile. "But I'm not going to take you to a barn or something to have dinner, Fae. And it's not _too _fancy. Please?"

She grumbled something under her breath. "Why do you always get me to give in to you?" she demanded.

He gave her a lopsided grin. "Because you love me?"

She fell silent at that, unable to come up with an appropriate answer or even a witty comeback.

"And," Fiyero continued smoothly, squeezing her hand, "because after studying all day today, and studying all day again tomorrow, your back is probably back to its horribly tense and painful state and if you give in right now, I might agree on giving you another of my famous massages tomorrow?"

She snorted. "Famous?" She put a hand over her heart mockingly. "And here I was thinking you were only _my _personal masseuse slave," she said, pretending to be hurt. "How many girls have you seduced with your 'famous' massages before?"

"Only one," he said, looking at her intently.

She stared back at him, trying to look unfazed.

"Who, then?" she asked.

He blinked, taken aback. "I, um… I mean…" He rubbed his neck uncomfortably, shuffling around a little. "I meant you, of course. I mean, I've never… done anything like that with another girl before –"

"Okay," she cut him off, smirking slightly. "I'm going to stop you right here. One: what makes you think you 'seduced' me?"

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, then grinned slightly. "Right."

"And two," she continued, "you're making it sound like we did something inappropriate. You've never 'done anything like that with another girl before'? What's that supposed to mean?"

Now his lopsided grin returned full-force and he brought their joined hands up to his lips to kiss the back of her hand, marvelling at the tingly sensation spreading through him.

"It means," he said with a dazzling smile, "that my amazing massages are reserved for you, and you only."

She nudged her with his elbow. "They better be."

He chuckled and drew her a little closer, wrapping his arm around her waist.

* * *

**You like? ^^ Let me know!**


	13. Ice, ice, baby

**AN: More fluff coming up, both this chapter and the next!**

**PerlogAnnwyl & TheLilyReviewer, you're right, I changed it!**

**Thedoctor24601: Yes, 'definishly' and 'congratulotions' and things like those are from the musical ;).**

**Broadwaygirl21: What Musicgal3's longest 'aww'-record was? Honestly, I don't exactly remember, but I think it was six hundred and something pages in Word. Good luck breaking that :').**

* * *

**Chapter 13. Ice, ice, baby**

They walked to the restaurant together, where Fiyero asked for a table for two and they were led to a table in the corner.

Elphaba looked around a little nervously. "I don't usually come in places like this one," she admitted, fidgeting with the hem of her dress. "And while we're at that… I just want to tell you now that people are going to stare at me and wonder what in Oz someone like you is doing here with someone like me," she added. "Just so you know. It doesn't really bother me anymore, but you -"

"Elphaba," Fiyero interrupted her sternly.

She laughed slightly, already knowing what he was going to say. "I'm talking too much again, aren't I? Sorry. No, I never let anyone else talk."

He grinned at her. "That's not what I was going to say," he said, "but okay, good to know."

She looked down, feeling a little embarrassed, but he reached out to lift her chin back up with his fingers so that she would look at him.

"Fae," he said. "I don't care if people wonder why I'm here with you. Let them wonder – it's none of their business." His eyes flashed for a moment with something she couldn't quite place. "They're stupid and ignorant, anyway, for not being able to see past your skin colour."

She blushed.

"And don't you dare tell me that it 'doesn't really bother you anymore'," he continued, looking at her intently. "Not after what you told me that night after I saved you from Suicide Canal. I know it still bothers you. It's only understandable that it does. And I understand why you put on a brave face around anyone else, but I don't want you to do that around me, Fae. I know you better than that. You can trust me. I promise."

She nodded and flashed him a quick smile, feeling a little uncomfortable. "Thanks." Thankfully, the waitress arrived then to take their orders, so she didn't have to think of anything else to say.

They made easy conversation as they waited and through the meal as well; and afterwards, Fiyero paid the bill, despite her protests, and walked her home.

"I hope you had a good time," he said as they set foot on campus again.

She smiled. "I did," she said. "Thank you."

"Thank _you_." He took her hand, their breaths leaving small puffs of steam in the cold winter air as they looked at each other. "Without you, I would probably have flunked out of Shiz before Lurlinemas."

"You just needed some motivation," she said. She shivered a little. Even though Galinda had agreed to let the green girl wear tights and she was wearing a vest underneath her coat, she was still cold.

Fiyero wrapped his arm around her and squeezed her close, rubbing her upper arm with his hand.

"Better?"

She nodded, dropping her head against his shoulder. He rested his cheek against her hair and that was how they walked to Elphaba's dorm room together.

"So…" Fiyero said as they came to a halt in front of the door. "I'll… see you tomorrow?"

"I'll meet you at the cafeteria for breakfast," Elphaba agreed and he smiled at her.

"Great. So…" He opened his mouth to say something. Then he closed it again, unsure of what to say.

He really wanted to kiss her, but how could he? He hadn't even told her how he felt yet. He had told himself he would, but it just hadn't come up. If he kissed her now, she'd totally freak out.

And so he just finished lamely with, "Sleep well," and left.

Elphaba opened the door to her dorm room, intending to go to sleep right away; but of course her roommate shot up the moment she heard the key in the lock.

"And?" the bubbly blonde girl asked excitedly, throwing her fluffy pink blankets back and sitting up, eagerly watching her roommate. "How was your date?"

Elphaba sent a horrified look in her friend's direction. "It wasn't a date!" she protested. "Just a 'thank you' dinner!"

"Yeah, right," Galinda giggled. "And I'm the Wonderful Wizard of Oz."

"Fiyero and I are just friends, Galinda!" the green girl insisted as she disappeared into the bathroom. "Nothing more!"

"Elphie," the blonde said pointedly as Elphaba appeared from the bathroom with a toothbrush in her mouth. "You got dressed up. Fiyero picked you up. He took you out for dinner. He paid – or I'm assuming he did, anyway. And then he walked you back home. I know you probably won't admit I'm right, but that sounds an awful lot like a date to me."

Elphaba paled and her toothbrush dropped from her mouth as she gaped at her roommate. "Oh my Oz, you're right!"

Galinda giggled as she watched Elphaba pick up the toothbrush and all but run into the bathroom again. She heard the sound of running water and then Elphaba came back in. Her make-up was washed off, but her face was still ashen.

"Do you think he saw this as a date?" she asked anxiously. "What is he expecting of me now? I mean… Galinda, no, this can't be right – why in Oz would he ever want to go on a date with me? He just wanted to thank me for helping him study!"

"Keep telling yourself that," Galinda sang out as she turned off the small light on her nightstand.

Elphaba just stood there in the middle of the room for a few moments, not moving. Then she quickly changed into her nightgown and crawled into bed, thoughts running through her head.

She already knew that she wouldn't be able to sleep for a long while yet.

* * *

Fiyero was just sitting at a table, stirring his coffee, when Elphaba came into the cafeteria. He lifted his hand to wave at her, but then he frowned. Her face looked like a thundercloud… and Galinda was trailing behind her, chattering happily – which he figured must have something to do with Elphaba's mood.

"Morning," he said with a smile as they came into hearing distance.

Elphaba grunted and sat down.

Galinda beamed at him. "Good morning, Fiyero!" she gushed. "Isn't it the most beautiful day? I was just telling Elphie here that we should all go out and do something fun!"

"And I was just telling _Galinda _here," Elphaba said a little snippily, "that she did _not _have to accompany me to get breakfast, and that I wished she would just leave me alone."

"And then I told Elphie I invited Nessa and Boq over for breakfast as well," Galinda informed the prince, "so if you and Elphie want to smooch, you'll have to find some other time to do it."

Fiyero choked on a sip of coffee. Elphaba buried her face in her hands.

"Oh, there is Nessa," Galinda pointed, either oblivious to her friend's reactions or completely ignoring them. She waved at the wheelchair-bound girl. "We're over here, Nessa!"

Nessarose wheeled herself over and smiled at the others. "Good morning, everyone. Boq isn't here yet?" she asked, looking for the Munchkin.

Galinda shook her head. "Not yet," she said, "but he'll probably get here soon. I'm going to get myself some food," she decided. "Can I get you anything, Nessa?"

"No, thank you," the girl declined politely. "I'll wait for Boq to arrive first."

"Elphie?"

"No," the green girl grumbled, head still buried in her arms. "I suddenly don't have any appetite anymore whatsoever."

"Oh, don't be dramatic, Elphie," Galinda scolded her friend, but she didn't push. Instead she just turned around and bounced off to get herself some breakfast.

Boq arrived not long thereafter and Elphaba didn't even get a chance to speak to Fiyero alone. She had a thousand questions to ask him. What had he meant by last night? Had it really been just a dinner to thank her for her help, or had there been more to it? Did he like her as a friend? Or more?

As they ate – well, Nessa, Galinda, Boq, and Fiyero ate; Elphaba just picked at the muffin her sister had gotten her without really eating anything – Galinda talked about their plans for the day.

"Since it's a Saturday," she was saying, "we all have the day off, and even though it's not snowing – it would have been absolutely amazifying if there had been snow, but, well, I can't control the weather – it's still cold enough so that the temperatures are below zero, and I was just thinking – all the lakes are frozen right now, so how about we go down to that small lake in the woods we've been to a couple of times to go ice skating?"

"Ice skating?" Elphaba echoed incredulously. "Really?"

Fiyero's face lit up. "Ooh, ice skating!"

Nessa just looked crestfallen. "I wish I could come," she said softly, "but…" She gestured towards her chair.

"Don't worry, Nessa," Boq tried to comfort her. "I'll stay with you… we can go and do something else. Or if you like, we could go and watch the ice skaters on the lake and have a picnic," he suggested. "Then we'd still all be together…"

Nessarose smiled widely. "That's a great idea, Boq," she said enthusiastically. "I'd love that."

He beamed at her.

Fiyero looked at the green girl opposite him, grinning. "That's four against one, Fae."

"I never said you couldn't go," she said, finally looking up from her now-deceased muffin. "I hope you'll all have fun. I'll go and work on my Literature essay."

Fiyero looked horrified. "What? No!" he protested. "You can't! You're not allowed to!"

She raised an eyebrow.

"He's right, Elphie," Galinda declared. "You're coming with us."

"I don't even own ice skates!" Elphaba protested weakly.

"We can rent them," said Galinda, firmer than her roommate had ever seen her. "You're coming along, Elphaba, if I have to drag you by your hair."

"Now that would make an interesting picture," Boq muttered under his breath.

Nessarose, Galinda, and Elphaba all glared at him. He quickly shoved a forkful of scrambled eggs into his mouth.

* * *

Elphaba ended up losing the battle with her friends and so after breakfast, they all set out for the lake together. There were several booths set up around the lake. As Galinda had predicted, there was a booth where one could rent ice skates; one for hot drinks and one for cake and biscuits; and another one that sold blankets and sweaters, in case someone hadn't dressed warmly enough or wanted a blanket to sit on.

Galinda was bouncing and gushing the entire time, clearly loving it. She waited impatiently for Elphaba to put on her skates and when the green girl was done, her roommate immediately dragged her out onto the ice.

"Come on, Elphie, let's skate!"

Nessarose and Boq settled on a blanket and watched the others as they set foot on the ice. Fiyero turned out to be very good at it, which surprised almost everyone.

"We have cold winters in the Vinkus," he explained. "I've been ice skating my entire life."

Elphaba had never been ice skating before, but she turned out to be a relatively quick learner. Fiyero and Galinda helped her at first, each grabbing one of her arms and slowly dragging her forward; but Elphaba soon discovered that Galinda was dragging her down, rather than forward.

"Glin," she said suspiciously after a while. "Do you even know how to ice skate?"

Galinda giggled. "Of course I do! Momsie and Popsicle took me ice skating several times when I was little," she said. She cleared her throat. "I'm just… not very good at it."

Fiyero quirked an amused eyebrow at her.

"Popsicle always helps me!" she protested. "He takes my hands and drags me, and all I have to do is stay still! But," she added with a giggle, "I discovered a while ago that it doesn't matter how good you are at ice skating… as long as you have someone to help you."

She looked around and suddenly let go of Elphaba to stumble towards a handsome boy some distance away. Elphaba and Fiyero both watched as the blonde quite literally fell into the boy's arms, giggling and fluttering her eyelashes at him. A minute later, he had one of her hands in his own and his arm wrapped around her waist and he was 'teaching' her how to ice skate.

"I can't believe that actually works," Elphaba said in amazement.

Fiyero chuckled. "Of course it does." She let out a surprised shriek as he suddenly wrapped one arm around her own waist and laced his fingers with hers, guiding her to ice skate just like the boy was doing with Galinda.

"You didn't have to pretend to be bad at ice skating to get my attention, though," he told her teasingly.

She blinked. "But I didn't – Fiyero! What are you saying?" she demanded in a high voice.

He grinned. "I'm saying you have my attention," he whispered, his breath tickling the hair next to her ear. "All the time."

She blushed deeply, though she tried to hide it.

"You can let go of me now," she said after a while. "I can do this on my own."

"Of course you can," said Fiyero, letting go of her. "Because Oz forbid someone _help _you with something."

She bristled. "Now you wait just a clock-tick," she said irritably, raising one finger and pointing it at him. "I can ask for help if I need it. I just –"

"Don't need it?" Fiyero finished drily for her.

She glared at him. "Exactly!" With that, she turned around and skated off. Before she was even five metres away from him, though, she slipped. She tried to regain her balance, but failed; and with a yelp, her back slammed down onto the ice, the air knocked from her lungs. She stayed there for a moment, trying to catch her breath.

Fiyero approached her. "Are you alright?" he asked her, a concerned look in his azure blue eyes, and she grunted.

"Fine. It's just my dignity that's hurt."

Fiyero chuckled.

She tried to push herself up. Fiyero held out a hand to help her, but somehow, he ended up slipping as well and he all but fell on top of her, nearly crushing the air out of her again.

He grinned a bit sheepishly down at her. "Hi."

She chuckled breathlessly. "Hi."

He knew he should probably get up, but somehow along the way, he had gotten lost in her eyes. She was so close that their noses were almost touching and she was looking up at him with those big, doe-like eyes of hers…

"So far for not needing help, huh?" he teased her, unable to restrain himself.

She narrowed her eyes, but then she deflated.

"Yeah… I guess," she conceded. She heaved a sigh.

"That's not a bad thing," he told her. "Everyone needs help sometimes. And I'm always happy to help you."

She searched his face, though for what, he wasn't sure. He smiled and she returned the smile a little hesitantly.

His eyes were drawn to her lips. He wondered, again, if they felt as soft as they looked and what they tasted like. Somehow, the entire lake and all the people seemed to disappear and they were the only ones left.

He leant down just a little, holding his breath when she parted her lips slightly and her eyes fluttered shut.

_I'm going to do it. Right now. I'm going to kiss her…_

And then, right before their lips connected, there was a loud squeal beside them.

"Oh my Oz, Fifi! Elphie!" Galinda flapped her arms in a panicky movement. "Are you okay? Did you fall? Fiyero, get up, you're crushing her!"

The moment broken, Elphaba's eyes snapped open again and Fiyero hastily scrambled back to his feet, holding out a hand to help Elphaba up as well. Her cheeks were red and she refused to met his gaze as she managed to balance herself on her ice skates again.

"Are you alright, Elphie?" Galinda asked again, worried, and her roommate nodded.

"I'm fine, Glin," she said quietly. "We just fell, that's all. We'll live."

She skated off without sparing him another glance. He sighed and went to join Boq and Nessa.


	14. That one special kiss

**AN: Okay, because you all asked for it... a very quick update this time! :) I want to ask you something in return, though: PLEASE STOP TRYING TO BREAK EACH OTHER'S 'AWW' RECORDS ;_;. No matter how much I appreciate it and love your reviews, they're kind of messing up my review page :3.**

**EmeraldReine, so glad to see you're back! I'm sorry to hear that you've been going through a rough time, but I'm glad I could help, if only a little bit... even though I didn't know I was doing it :P. I'd love to read your new story/stories!**

**BlueD, have an awesome vacation! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 14. That one special kiss**

"Study."

"Song."

"Study."

"Song."

"_Study_!"

"_Song_! I can do this all day, Elphaba!"

"So can I," she retorted. "Study!"

"Guys!" Boq shouted, effectively silencing them both.

The Munchkin sighed. "Thank you."

"Why don't you study first," Nessarose suggested patiently, "and then work on the song?"

"Because," said Elphaba through gritted teeth, "that song is long finished by now. Why do you keep insisting we work on it, Fiyero? It was perfect days ago! What am I saying – _weeks _ago! It was perfect right after we finished it the week after Lurlinemas break!"

Fiyero felt himself redden slightly. Shiz, she was on to him.

"Well…" he stammered, trying to think of an excuse. His face brightened when he found one. "I started working on a different song the other day and I want you to help me with that one!"

She gave him a suspicious look that told him she did not believe that in the slightest – even though it was true. He had felt the urge to write a song for Elphaba ever since he realised he was in love with her, but he had resisted, thinking she would laugh at him. After the day they had gone ice skating, however, he just couldn't hold himself back anymore. He'd started to write at least four different songs already, only to crumple them and toss them into a corner after one verse or chorus, thinking they weren't good enough. He really could use her help.

"Fabala," Nessa admonished her sister. "Be nice."

"What?" Elphaba's eyes widened. "I _am _being nice!"

Fiyero pouted, playing along. "If you really were that nice, you'd agree to help me," he said in a pathetic little voice.

She kicked him under the table so that Nessa couldn't see. He grimaced, but didn't make a sound.

"Fine, then," she agreed gruffly. "But we're going to _study _first. You have an exam coming up and two essays due next week, Fiyero. You really need to take this more seriously."

"Yes, Mum."

That earned him another kick. This time, however, Nessarose noticed; and she threw a warning look in her sister's direction.

"Fabala…"

Elphaba grumbled something under her breath and rose abruptly to her feet. "Let's go, then," she said. "To the library."

"My room."

"Library."

"My –"

"Not this again!" Boq glared at them both. "How about you study for a few hours in the library," he suggested, gritting his teeth, "and then you move to Fiyero's room to work on the song?"

Elphaba and Fiyero exchanged a look, then nodded.

"That could work."

Boq sighed and shook his head as the two walked off.

Even though he tried his hardest, though, Fiyero found that he simply could not focus on his studying. He silently handed Elphaba the essay he had already written a first draft of and watched her as she proofread it for him, peering at the words through her glasses, that small frown on her face that indicated she was concentrating. She was wearing her hair loose today, which he loved. He wished he could just reach out and touch the strands of silk, but figured – correctly – that that would most likely creep her out.

He struggled to pay attention to the things she was telling him; but the moment she returned to her own work and left him to re-write his essay, he found himself getting distracted again – mostly by her. Like the way she tapped against the desk with a long, slim, green finger when she was thinking about a particularly hard problem. Or the way she brushed her hair away from her face with an impatient swipe of her hand. Or –

"Fiyero," she said sternly, jolting him from his thoughts.

"Sorry!" he said immediately, casting his eyes downwards to look at his essay again.

He steadfastly avoided her gaze as she stared at him for a few long moments, as if she was trying to see straight into his head. Finally she returned to her own work and he told himself to focus on his.

It took him a great effort, but he had managed to finish one of his essays and study a bit for his exam by the time the clock in the library chimed four. He looked at Elphaba.

"It's four o'clock," he said.

She looked up with a slightly dazed expression on her face. "Hmm?"

"It's four o'clock," he repeated. "We've been studying all morning and most of the afternoon. Can we go and do something fun now?"

"That long?" She sent a mischievous smirk in his direction. "That must be your record."

"Absolutely," he told her seriously. "I think my previous record of studying was two hours at most, and that was also because you forced me to."

Her smirk turned into a more sincere smile. "I'm proud of you, Yero."

He blinked. "Really?"

"Yes." She closed her book and started stashing everything away in her bag.

"I know this is a big thing for you," she said. "You're not used to any of this, and the fact that you're trying so hard tells me you're really serious about changing. I'm glad you are. So yes, I am proud of you."

He beamed at her.

They walked back to his dorm room together, where they left their bags in a corner. Elphaba sat down on the couch and Fiyero grabbed his guitar, then hesitated.

"Fae?"

She looked up at him. "Yes?"

He sighed and put his guitar back. "I don't really feel like working on songs," he confessed as he sat down on the couch next to the green girl. "I mean… I know I said I was working on something, and I am, but… but maybe I'm going all wrong about this."

She frowned slightly. "What do you mean?" she questioned, clearly confused.

He rose to his feet again and pushed his hands through his sandy hair. Then he started to pace restlessly.

He had wanted to tell her through a song because he had thought that would be easier, but now he was having doubts. What if he couldn't get a word out? What if she didn't understand – if she didn't get that it was about her? She wasn't one for guessing games and vague hints. He should tell her straight to her face.

When he turned to face her again, he stopped and looked at her for a long time.

"I have to tell you something," he said.

She was still looking at him expectantly. "Okay."

"And…" He took a deep breath. "And I want to tell you beforehand that no matter what you think… it's not a joke. I'm being completely serious here. I should have told you this a long time ago, but I was afraid of… of so many things… and it's about time I got over that, I think. I'm going to be honest with you now and I want to ask you to do the same. Even if you think I won't like it."

"Alright…" She looked like she was expecting something terrible – which, frankly, she was. She had no idea what he was about to tell her, but she doubted it was anything good and a thousand disaster scenarios were running through her head. Her mouth was dry and her heart was pounding.

He crouched down in front of her to match her height, though he did not touch her. Instead, he just looked into her eyes.

"Elphaba," he said. "I love you."

For the longest time, she just stared at him, unable to come up with a reply. Her eyes were wide and she opened and closed her mouth a few times, but no sound came out.

The silence seemed to last for hours, but really, it was only a few clock-ticks before she asked in a small voice, "Really?"

Fiyero exhaled slowly through his nose, grateful that at least she hadn't slapped him or accused him of lying.

"Yes," he said, making sure to maintain eye contact with her to convince her of his sincerity. "Really."

She bit her lip, unsure of what to say. Fiyero spoke again before she could open her mouth to reply.

"Be honest," he reminded her.

She nodded and took a deep breath.

"I…" She faltered for a moment, but then she raised her gaze to meet his and said, "I love you, too."

He gawked at her for a moment, not really expecting that reply – even though he had been hoping for it with all his heart.

"You… you do?" he croaked.

She nodded shyly.

"Yeah," she said, her voice a little faint. "I… I think I have for a while now."

Slowly, a goofy grin spread across his face.

Her cheeks were red and he could see the uncertainty in her eyes, but instead of trying to reassure her with words, he decided to just show her.

"Can I kiss you?" he asked her rather bluntly.

Her eyes widened for a moment, but then she slowly nodded.

"I… yes," she said.

He took her hands in his and squeezed them softly. She rose to her feet so that he wouldn't have to stay in his awkward, crouched position on the floor; and he straightened and reached out to brush a strand of raven hair behind her ear.

"Have you…" He swallowed, suddenly nervous. "Have you ever kissed anyone before?"

She shook her head, biting her lower lip again.

"No," she said softly. "I mean…" She helplessly gestured at herself. "No-one has ever shown any interest."

"Well, that's over now," he said firmly, feeling bold again. He could not believe that everyone in her life so far had been too shallow to look past her skin. Her father had only treated her like garbage, she had never been kissed, she had never even had any friends… how could people be so blind?

"Because I'm here now," he told her, squeezing her hand softly, "and I can tell you that I am very, very interested."

She chuckled weakly and he drew her closer, placing his fingers under her chin. They both kept their eyes open as he brushed her lips with his own, tentatively at first, but soon their kisses grew more bold and when he carefully ran his tongue along her lips, she parted them to let him in. He watched her face as her eyes fluttered shut at last and his fingers dug into her waist as he pulled her even closer so that her body was flush against his own.

Over her shoulder he could see the frame containing the picture of Aliyra, her eyes smiling and her face beaming at him as he kissed the _other _girl he loved.

He reached out with one hand and resolutely turned the photograph around to face the wall instead.

* * *

"So…" Elphaba folded her hands in her lap and looked up at Fiyero rather nervously. "What happens now?"

He sank down onto the couch next to her.

"I don't know," he said. "What would you like to happen?"

She bit her lip, unsure of what to say. Did she want this? More importantly – could she do this? Oz knew she wasn't cut out to be a sister, or a daughter… so far, she seemed to be doing okay as a friend – but was she really ready to take on the part of girlfriend as well?

"How about this," Fiyero interrupted her train of thought, probably sensing her hesitance. "Tomorrow after class, I'm going to take you out on a date. Nothing special – just coffee at the Primrose Café, if you want. We'll take it slow. Get to know one another, go on a few dates… and then we'll see. Okay?"

She tried to think of anything wrong with that plan, but she found nothing and so she nodded.

"Okay."

He smiled and squeezed her hand. "Good."

When she walked back to her dorm room some time after that, clutching her bag to her chest, she mused over everything that had happened and she found herself simply unable to believe it.

He loved her.

Fiyero Tiggular, the boy that had tried so hard to befriend her; the boy that she'd secretly had a crush on for far longer than she would admit to anyone, even to herself; the boy that she had always imagined would end up with someone like Galinda… he loved her. He loved the outcast; the artichoke; the green girl. It was enough to make her head spin.

When she came back to her dorm room, Galinda of course immediately noticed that something was off and Elphaba did not see anything she could do but tell her roommate the truth. The blonde was ecstatic, throwing her arms around her best friend.

"I knew it!" she squealed. "Oh my Oz, this is so thrillifying, Elphie! I'm so happy for you! You guys are _so adorable _together!"

"Are we?" Elphaba asked doubtfully as she sat down on the edge of her own bed. "I mean… don't you think it's… weird? Him and me?"

Galinda shook her head. "Not at all," she declared. "In fact, I saw this coming for a long time already. You've grown so close over the past months, and the way Fiyero keeps looking at you, especially that night he took you out… not to mention the changes in _you _– I've never seen you voluntarily spending so much time on fun things than since Lurlinemas break. Helping Fiyero work on his song, going out with us, even if it's just joining us for lunch or coffee or dinner… it was all for him, wasn't it? You've liked him for a long time already!"

Elphaba let herself fall back onto the bed. "I have," she admitted.

Galinda smiled.

"But, Glin…" The dark-haired girl sat up again and looked at her friend pleadingly. "I'm _green_. He's a prince."

"And I'm blonde," Galinda retorted. "What does that have to do with anything? You know he looks past your skin colour, Elphie. We all do." She got up to hug her friend. "And you're beautiful, green or not."

That earned herself a genuinely grateful smile from her roommate. "Thanks, Glin."

"You're welcome." Galinda pulled back and bounced down onto her bed, eyes shining. "Now tell me everything. Is he a good kisser? Never mind," she cut Elphaba off before she could say anything, "I know he is. We kissed that night of the OzDust, after all."

Elphaba grimaced. "Oh, Oz. He kissed _you_!" Her eyes widened in panic. "I mean, he kissed you, and a thousand other girls… and I have never even been kissed before! What if he thinks I suck at it? Not literally, I mean," she rambled, flushing when she realised how that sounded, "but, you know, what if I'm bad? What if he found it disgusting?"

Galinda giggled and kicked her legs up. "Ooh, I've been wishing for so long that I could have these kinds of conversations with you!"

"It's not funny, Galinda!" Elphaba cried.

"Okay, okay." Galinda looked at her friend earnestly. "Tell me exactly how it went."

Elphaba looked back helplessly. "What?"

"The kissing!" Galinda puckered her lips and made kissing noises to illustrate her point. "Tongue or just lips?"

"No tongue at first," Elphaba muttered, colouring, and Galinda giggled.

"Okay, so tongue. The first part was probably perfect – trust me, Elphie, experience or no experience, there's not much you can do wrong with just lips kissing." She frowned. "Unless you did something weird, like bite him."

Elphaba groaned and pulled her pillow over her head. "Never mind, Glin. I'll… figure it out myself."

"Oh, no." Galinda waved her finger at the green girl as if she was chastising a naughty puppy. "No way. Let me give you advice, Elphie, please! I know what I'm talking about, after all!"

Elphaba moaned again. "I'm going to regret this."

"Probably," Galinda agreed cheerfully. "Okay, so what did you do with your tongue and what did he do with his? You _did _move, right? I mean, you didn't just keep your tongue still like some creepy, slimy snail, or something!"

"Ew!" Elphaba exclaimed in disgust. "Galinda!"

"Okay, I take that as a no."

"Can we stop talking about the kissing?" Elphaba begged. "Please?"

Galinda huffed. "Fine. Don't worry about it, though – I'm sure he doesn't think you're bad at it. There's only so much you can do wrong when kissing. As long as you didn't pull a snail or a propeller on him…"

Elphaba shuddered. "I don't even want to know what that means," she said, still blushing a bright red.

"Constantly twisting your tongue in circles," Galinda informed her. "You know, round and round and round all the time. Anyway, you should be fine in that department."

She hopped over to Elphaba's bed again. "Is he taking you on a date?"

"Coffee tomorrow," she said, thankfully feeling her flushed face cooling down a little. "We want to take it slowly."

Galinda nodded with a smile. "Good. That's good." She started bouncing up and down again. "Oh, I'm so excited! You got your first kiss, Elphie! And from _Fiyero_!"

Elphaba didn't say anything and the blonde, knowing her roommate by now, threw her a look. "You're already making a list in your head of all the things that could go wrong, aren't you?"

"Yes," Elphaba admitted.

Galinda shook her head.

"Don't," she said. "Fiyero is a perfect gentleman and he _loves _you, Elphie. He has liked you from the beginning and if I'm right, he has loved you for a long time already, too. If he's willing to take it slow, that must mean you really are important to him… don't let the stories about him get to you. You know he's not like that anymore."

"I know," said Elphaba softly. "But can a person really change that much in a matter of months?"

Galinda squeezed her friend's arm.

"I guess you're just going to have to take the chance," she said with a smile, "and find out."

* * *

**You're all right about drama kicking in soon. *ominous music in background* I won't say anything, but... Chapter 20 (though there will be some minor stuff in the chapters before that, too).**


	15. A sister like you

**AN: Hey, guys. Sorry for the late update - I was at a friend's, having a sleepover and a Game Of Thrones marathon.**

**Caricature of a Witch: Maleficent is awesome, isn't it? :D Also, the girl talk was based on an actual conversation I once had with my sister... mention 'snail' or 'propeller' to her and she'll cry with laughter :P.**

**Musicgal3: Leave it to you to give me the longest 'aww' ever that does _not _mess up my review page... :')**

**Thedoctor24601: Don't worry, it wasn't justyou ;).**

**And no, guys, Frex is not going to do anything creepy in this one. I doubt whether he'll even appear in this story at all!**

* * *

**Chapter 15. A sister like you**

Fiyero kept his promise of taking things slowly; and much to her own surprise, Elphaba found herself gradually growing more comfortable with the new status of their relationship.

He never pushed her. Their first date was just them having coffee together, the way they had done lots of times when they were still 'just friends'. Fiyero wrote more music and Elphaba helped him with the lyrics. He took her out for dinner or lunch once or twice, but never anywhere too fancy, knowing she wouldn't be comfortable with that. They didn't kiss again the way they had that first time – Fiyero was too afraid to scare her off and so he mostly stuck with kisses to her cheek, hair, or forehead, sometimes even fearful to wrap his arm around her shoulders or waist as they walked. Every touch seemed to have so much more meaning now, and he knew she could feel that, too. However slowly, they were forging a new kind of bond… one that was still very fragile, and one he was terrified to break.

One day, he waited for her after her class, a smile on his face. When she emerged, he took her hands in his own.

"Come," he said, his eyes twinkling. "I have a surprise for you."

"Fiyero, you know I hate surprises," she protested, but he just tugged at her hands until she rolled her eyes and allowed him to lead her through the hallways, across the courtyard and into one of the other buildings. He took her to a door at the end of a small hallway and then stopped her.

"Close your eyes."

She scowled. "Fiyero –"

"You trust me, don't you?"

She hated it when he guilt-tripped her like that – or that was how it felt, anyway – but she obediently closed her eyes, even though her scowl remained on her face. She could hear Fiyero opening the door and then he led her into a different room. He gently sat her down on a bench and she heard him closing the door behind them.

"Alright," he said. "Open your eyes."

She did.

They were in a classroom filled with music. There was sheet music drawn on the blackboard, there were guitars in one corner and violins, cellos, and flutes in another. Stacks of music books, as well as loose pages of sheet music, were on tables, on the floor, and in the window sill. She was sitting on a piano bench, with in front of her a beautiful piano, and she reached out to lightly touch the keys.

"I found this room the other day," Fiyero said, approaching her, "and it gave me an idea." He sat down on the bench beside her and ran his fingers over the keys. Then he looked at her.

"One day when I played guitar for you, you mentioned you would like to learn how to play an instrument," he said. "Would you like to learn how to play the piano?"

She held her breath, eyes shining. "Really?"

He smiled. "Yes. I told you I play different instruments… and somehow, you just strike me as a piano kind of person." He covered her hand with his. "Here, let me show you."

They spent the rest of the afternoon in that music room, him teaching her the different tones and having her play relatively easy tunes as he explained to her how she could combine two or more notes to form a chord. She allowed him to guide her fingers across the keys, even leaning into his side a little bit; and he turned his head to press a kiss to her temple.

"We had a piano at home," Elphaba said softly at one point, her fingers playing with the keys. "My mother used to play. I don't remember all that much of her – I was not even three years old when she died, after all… but I do remember her playing. I always loved listening to her. She tried to teach me a little at some point, but I was so young…" She trailed off, her sadness at the memories almost tangible.

Fiyero squeezed her waist comfortingly.

She turned in his arms to look at him.

"Thank you," she said sincerely. "For teaching me."

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "You're welcome."

She surprised him by cupping his face in her hands and kissing his lips. He immediately responded, though, tangling his fingers in her long, silky hair as he kissed her back. When he finally pulled away, he touched his forehead to hers, smiling at the slightly shy look on her face.

"Hey, Fae?" he whispered, his breath tickling her cheek.

She met his eyes. "Yeah?"

He kissed her again, briefly and softly this time. "I love you."

A dazzling smile lit up her face and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you, too."

He grinned at her, still not believing she was actually saying this to him, let alone feeling it, too.

"Yero… I would love to stay here, but it's getting late," she pointed out. "I really need to go if I want to get some studying done tonight."

"Can I take you out on a date tomorrow night?" he asked her. "You can pick where we go, if you want to."

She hesitated. "But tomorrow is a week day," she protested meekly. "And I have that report due next week…"

"You can study during the day and I won't bother you," he promised her. "Just come find me whenever you're ready."

"Okay." She kissed his cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He caught her hand. "I'll walk you back."

She didn't even protest, having learnt by now that it was of no use.

In front of her door, they stopped and she turned to him. He smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Good luck studying," he said.

She kissed him and he wrapped his arms around her, deepening the kiss. They were so absorbed in what they were doing that they didn't notice Galinda standing in the doorway until they finally broke apart, both of them flushed and breathless.

The blonde stood there looking at them, one eyebrow lifted and an amused expression on her face.

Elphaba immediately jumped back, looking red as a tomato.

"Bye, Yero," she choked out, leaping into the dorm room and slamming the door shut behind her.

Galinda giggled. "She is so adorable, don't you think? Being all embarrassed about me seeing the two of you kiss… she's such a private person!"

"Um, Galinda," said Fiyero a little irritably, "I think _anyone _would be embarrassed if their best friend would be studying you kissing your boyfriend as if it were some extremely interesting project."

The blonde looked puzzled. "Why?"

Fiyero sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "Never mind."

Galinda frowned as she stared at the closed door. "Good thing I was going out anyway," she muttered. "It doesn't seem like Elphie would be very willing to let me back in." She huffed and Fiyero had to stifle a smile at her genuine confusion.

"You know, Glin?" he said with a small chuckle. "You really are something."

She beamed at him. "Why, thank you, Fifi." She patted his arm as she brushed past him, humming softly to herself as she went off to wherever she was going this time.

* * *

"I hate him!" Nessarose shrieked, her face bright red as she wheeled herself across her room with wild arm gestures. "I hate him, I loathe him, I despise him! I wish he would just drop dead on the spot!"

Elphaba and Galinda exchanged a look. When Madame Morrible had come to find the girls, explaining that Nessarose was throwing a fit and 'Miss Elphaba' would probably be the best person to comfort the wheelchair-bound girl, Elphaba and Galinda had been surprised. Galinda hadn't thought Nessa capable of throwing fits at all; and Elphaba, though familiar with the girl's antics, had hoped that Nessa had grown past it by now. Apparently, that hope had been unfounded.

"Nessie," Elphaba asked gently now, knowing how to deal with her sister when she was like this. "What happened?"

"Is this about Boq?" asked Galinda.

That only made things worse. Nessa's eyes narrowed and she spun around to point a finger at Galinda accusingly.

"Don't you dare mention that name in my presence!" she screeched. "I will not hear anything about him _ever _again!"

Elphaba knelt down in front of her sister.

"Nessa, tell me what happened," she said urgently. "What did he do? Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Nessarose shook her head wildly. "No, he didn't _hurt _me! Not physically, at least. He's a _Munchkin_ – he couldn't hurt me if he tried, wheelchair or not!"

Galinda stifled laughter at that, but Elphaba remained completely serious, a thousand scenarios in her mind that involved Boq being horrible to her sister in some way. She swore to herself that no matter what he had done, she would make him pay for it.

"Was he mean to you?" Elphaba asked her sister. "Did he cheat on you? He didn't behave inappropriately, did he? Because if he did, Nessa, I swear I'm going to –"

"No!" Nessa shook her head again. "It was nothing like that! He just…" She sighed, a scowl on her face. "He… when we first started dating, he promised me he'd treat me like a princess." Her lower lip wobbled. "He said that every month, he would take me out for a fancy dinner and we'd go do something nice together, for every anniversary… because… because he loves me and he wants me to feel like a queen…" She crossed her arms, tears standing in her eyes now. "And he _forgot_," she seethed. "Not only did he forget about dinner – no, he forgot our _anniversary._ He forgot it! Can you believe that?"

Galinda gasped in horror, even as Elphaba stared at her sister, speechless.

"So then I broke up with him," Nessa declared. "It was the most humiliating, rude, and inconsiderate thing that _ever _happened to me, and I refuse to be treated like that. I won't tolerate this behaviour of him."

"_This_," Elphaba said in a low voice, "_this _is the most humiliating and rude thing that ever happened to you? Boq forgetting about your _anniversary_?"

Galinda caught on to the dangerous undertone of Elphaba's voice and she threw a worried glance in her best friend's direction. She knew that when it came to being humiliated, Elphaba was practically an expert; people treated her rudely all the time, and even though the green girl normally pretended it didn't get to her in the slightest, Galinda understood that Nessa was taking it too far right now.

Nessa herself, however, didn't realise anything was amiss.

"Yes!" she exclaimed in response to Elphaba's question. "I mean, can you believe him?"

"Did you even remind the boy?" Elphaba asked through gritted teeth. "Did you even explain to him what he did 'wrong'," she used her fingers as quote marks, "or did you just break up with him and storm off?"

"Of course I didn't remind him!" Nessa raised her chin defiantly. "He completely ruined everything. I hate him. He humiliated me and I will _not _stand for that!"

"Nessa," said Galinda softly. "You do realise who you're talking to about rudeness and humiliation, don't you?"

Nessarose didn't seem to understand at first, but then she glanced at Elphaba, who was looking rather murderous, and her scowl returned.

"Yes," she sneered, "I do realise that. But maybe _you_, Galinda, don't realise that not everything is about my sister, even though she always tries to _make _everything about her!"

"Excuse me?!" Elphaba demanded, and Nessa stuck her chin forward.

"Always," she spat, "always has everything been about you. You were the one all of Munchkinland knew, because of your skin. You were the one who always embarrassed Father in every way possible. You were the one the entire student population of Shiz has been talking about for the past year. Everything is always about you!"

"Oh, so I'm doing it on purpose now?" asked Elphaba sarcastically. "Really, Nessa? Are you really going to do this? Do you think I _like _people talking about me all the time? Well, I'm _sorry _I picked the wrong skin colour when I was given the choice of how I wanted to be born!"

"And you should be sorry!" Nessa shouted. "You should be sorry for standing out all the time, for always drawing attention to yourself, and especially for not being a supportive sister when I need you to be!"

"Nessa!" Galinda said, shocked.

Elphaba could only gape at her sister.

"You are never there for me!" Nessa accused, tears in her eyes.

"I have been taking care of you my entire life long!" Elphaba hissed. "Sweet Oz, Nessa! I comforted you when you were scared, sad, or sick; I read you stories, I sang for you, I took you for walks. I bathed you, I dressed you – I did _everything _for you! And I did not mind. I still don't, and I never complained about it. But don't you _dare _tell me that I'm never there for you!"

"Then why are you choosing Boq over me?!"

"Because him forgetting an anniversary is an incredibly petty and stupid reason to be breaking up with him! The boy adores you, Nessa!"

"Well, clearly not enough!" Nessarose said angrily. "And you are a horrible sister for choosing his side and not mine!"

Galinda tried to soothe the younger girl. "Nessa, come on…"

Elphaba shook her head. "You're just not used to any of this," she said. "You're used to the whole world revolving around you, like it did at home."

Nessa reddened. "And what is _that _supposed to mean?!"

"It means that you are spoilt, Nessa! And I know that's not your fault, but you really need to snap out of your own world and think more about other people's feelings, instead of your own!"

Nessarose's eyes narrowed until they were nothing but dark slits.  
"You are just jealous," she said, her voice like ice and her words piercing like daggers. "You always have been. You are just jealous of me because Father loves _me _to death, yet he would hardly care if _you _jumped into Suicide Canal tomorrow!"

"Nessa!" Galinda cried in shock, eyes wide. She quickly looked at her friend. Elphaba had paled visibly, but Nessa would not give in. She merely huffed, crossed her arms, and turned around.

Galinda placed a hand on her roommate's arm. "Elphie?"

Elphaba shook her off. "I'm fine, Glin," she said, but her voice sounded strange and choked and Galinda could see the hurt in her eyes as she turned around and fled the room, leaving her sister and best friend behind.

Elphaba wrapped her arms around herself, blinking back tears. Why was she so upset, anyway? Nessa was right, after all. She knew that. She'd known that her entire life long.

She all but ran across campus, only slowing down when she reached the tree line. Still hugging herself, she kept walking, not sure where she was going, but not really caring, either.

If Nessa so much as sprained a finger, Frexspar Thropp would be immensely worried. He would take the first carriage to Shiz to see his youngest daughter, and he would make sure that she would get the best care possible.

If Elphaba were to jump into Suicide Canal, as Nessa had said, would he care?

She couldn't help but wonder about that as she walked. Would he be sad?

She almost laughed out loud at that, because she knew the answer as well as Nessa did: no. No, he would not be sad. She'd be surprised if he'd even show up for her funeral. All Frexspar would feel if his oldest daughter died was anger, because he would see it as her failing to keep taking care of her sister.

She couldn't blame him, either. What was she, after all? A green-skinned freak. A walking disaster. An abomination.

Wrapping her arms tighter around herself and trying her hardest to keep her tears at bay, she veered left, heading for Suicide Canal.

* * *

**I'm kind of devastated right now. Last Saturday, I booked tickets for the final two performances of Willemijn Verkaik as Elphaba in October and I've never been so excited for anything in my life... and on Monday, it was announced that Willemijn has to have surgery because of a back injury and she will play her final show this Saturday. I can't go, and I'm really upset about it.**

**Of course this is much worse for her than it is for me, and so I'd like to dedicate this chapter to the amazing and perfect Willemijn Verkaik. I hope she will recover soon and feel much better afterwards.**

**Also, I'm trying to look at the bright side - the other cast members will still be there, Savannah, Jeremy... and I still get to attend a muck-up matinee and a final performance.**


	16. So beautiful

**AN: Okay, I've calmed down by now... I mean, I'm still sad that I won't be able to see Willemijn, but yesterday I was just in a very bad and upset and slightly dramatic mood. Sorry about that :3.**

**Anyways, since the last chapter took so long for me to put up, I decided to update soon this time :).**

**Much fluff in this chapter, all for you. Fluffidy-fluffidy-fluff! (Because no, of course Elphaba is not going to jump into Suicide Canal. Come on, guys. She would never kill herself. Well, except for in _Everything_... but in that one the circumstances were way worse.)**

* * *

**Chapter 16. So beautiful**

"Fiyero!" Galinda pounded on the door to the prince's dorm room with two fists. "_Fiyero_! For Oz's sake, open up!"

"Glin?" she suddenly heard from behind her. She turned around, only to see Fiyero standing behind her, his bag in his hand.

"Where were you?" she screeched, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

"In class," he replied drily.

She had no response to that, so instead of trying to come up with one, she started tugging at his sleeve.

"Fiyero, you have to come," she said urgently. "It's Elphaba."

He immediately looked worried. "What about Elphaba?"

"She's going to kill herself!"

His eyes widened. "_What_?!"

Upon seeing the panicked look on his face, Galinda conceded, "Okay, maybe that's my own interpretation of it, but… but she had a huge fight with Nessa, and Nessa said something about her jumping into Suicide Canal, and now I just ran into Shenshen and Milla and they said they saw Elphie heading for Suicide Canal!"

Fiyero was looking pale. "She wouldn't… would she?"

"I don't know!" Galinda wailed, tugging at his sleeve again. "Just come with me, for Oz's sake!"

He did, running after the blonde as she crossed campus. When they reached the canal, Fiyero ordered, "You go right. I'll go left," and the blonde just nodded and ran off without further arguing.

Fiyero eventually found the green girl underneath a tree, curled into herself with her knees hugged to her chest as she stared at the canal without really seeing anything. The prince breathed a sigh of relief and stopped a boy he knew from his Economics class.

"Can you go and find Miss Galinda for me and tell her that her roommate is alright?" he asked the boy. "She should be somewhere over there." He pointed in the direction Galinda had disappeared in. "Tell her we'll meet her at her dorm room later."

The boy nodded and promised he'd convey the message.

Fiyero approached Elphaba, who noticed him, but didn't say anything; she just followed him with her eyes as he sat down beside her, not touching her.

"Are you okay?" he asked her softly.

She shrugged.

He reached out to take her hand, but when she flinched, he pulled away. "I'm sorry."

She didn't respond.

"Will you tell me what happened?"

She shook her head wordlessly.

He sighed and ran both hands through his hair, feeling frustrated at not being able to do anything for her. "Fae… Galinda just came running to me, telling me you had a huge fight with Nessa and that you were going to kill yourself. You have no idea how worried I was."

Now she was staring at him with wide eyes. "_What_?"

He shrugged helplessly. "She said something about Suicide Canal," he said. "That Nessa had mentioned something about it and that Filla and Men-Men, or whatever those girls are called, saw you heading here…"

She was scowling now. "That doesn't mean I was going to kill myself," she said irritably. "That girl is so overdramatic sometimes!"

She looked away. "Besides," she muttered wryly, "if I was going to try and kill myself, I'd find a more pleasant way to do it than by jumping into a canal."

Fiyero shook his head, not amused.

"Fae… please tell me what's wrong," he almost begged her. "You're obviously upset, and I'm worried about you. What happened with Nessa?"

Elphaba sighed.

"She told me the truth," she said bitterly. "She… she said all these things about me, that everything is always about me and that I'm never there for her… that I'm a horrible sister. And she's right." She looked down. "I always tried my best, but it's not enough. It's never been enough, and it never will be," she whispered. "Because… because I'm _me_, and as long as I am who I am, Nessa will never be happy."

"Elphaba!" Fiyero tried to wrap his arm around her, to comfort her, but she shook him off.

"I don't want your pity, Fiyero," she said. "I just want you to leave me alone."

He looked hurt. "What? Why?"

"Because I'm me!" she nearly shouted at him. "I am green, I am a failure, and I am unlovable – and if you keep trying to get close to me, you'll only end up resenting me and I don't want that, Fiyero! I love you and I want to be with you, I really do, but it's just not _right_!"

"Says who?" he demanded fiercely. "You?"

"Yes!"

"Well," he stuck his chin up in the air, "then _I _say it _is _right, no matter what _you_ say."

She glared at him. He could be so Oz-damned stubborn sometimes!

"It seems we have reached an impasse," he said, raising one eyebrow at her.

She shook her head. "No. _No_," she declared. "You don't get a say in this, Fiyero. This is the truth and you have to face it. No-one can love me. No-one ever has and no-one ever will. Whatever you think you're feeling for me is not love, it's just… something else. Something that will pass soon."

He stared at her.

"If that really is what you think," he said slowly, "then I am starting to doubt who, exactly, is the brainless one in this relationship."

She shoved him – hard. "Just go away, Fiyero!"

He didn't, of course. Instead he wrapped his arms around her.

She tried to get away from him, hitting him everywhere she could reach and struggling to break free; but he refused to let go of her, which only fuelled her anger and frustration. She shouted at him to let her go. She kept thrashing and lashing out at him. Fiyero, however, barely pulled a muscle. He just held her until finally, she collapsed in his arms, crying.

He rocked her back and forth, stroking her hair and rubbing her back soothingly. "Shh," he whispered, kissing her forehead. "Shh, it's okay, sweetheart, it's okay."

"No, it's not!" she sniffled, hating how weak and pathetic she sounded. "You can't love me, Fiyero! No-one can!"

"I can," he said. "And I do." He kept on stroking her hair as she buried her face in his shoulder.

"And I am sure I'm not the only one, Fae," he continued softly, resting his chin on top of her head. "It's not true, what you said."

"Who then?" she asked him, her voice sounding choked. "Who ever loved me?"

He wanted to start with saying 'your parents', but he realised that given what she had told him about her father, that most likely wasn't true.  
"My mother did, maybe," she said quietly. "But I wouldn't know. I was so young when she died, I'm not even sure my memories are real memories or if I just created them in my head."

Fiyero tightened his grip on her, dropping a kiss to her hair.

"And Nessa… she never loved me," Elphaba whispered. "How could she? I ruined everything for her. Her family, her ability to walk, her _life_…" She burrowed deeper into his chest, as if trying to make herself vanish.

"She was right," she choked out. "What she said about Father."

Fiyero wasn't sure he wanted to know, but he had to ask. "What did she say, Fae?"

He could hear her stifle a sob.

"She said I was jealous," Elphaba finally said. "She said I was jealous because Father would do anything for her, for Nessa, because he loves her… but if I were to jump into the canal now and die, he couldn't care less."

Fiyero sucked in his breath, shocked.

"Don't deny it," Elphaba mumbled against his chest. "It's true. He blames me, Fiyero." Her eyes filled with tears again and she turned her head, not wanting to look at him. "And he's right, too. If I hadn't been born, my mother would still be alive and Nessa would be able to walk. It's my fault."

"Elphaba…" He cradled her closer to his chest, feeling her trembling against him. "You can't possibly believe that."

She didn't respond.

He pulled away slightly to look into her eyes.

"Fae," he said softly, "this is ridiculous. You are not responsible for your mother's death or for Nessa being unable to walk. Bad things just happen sometimes, but that doesn't make it your fault!"

She shook her head. "But it was because of me that –"

"No," he cut her off sternly.

"Yes!" she countered, sitting up. "You don't know the whole story, Fiyero! My father made my mother chew milk flowers during her pregnancy to keep Nessa from being born green – to keep a disaster like _my _birth from happening – and that's why she went into labour too early! It's my fault, Yero, it is. If it weren't for me, none of it would have happened."

"It also wouldn't have happened if your father had just accepted and loved you for who you were, instead of labelling you an embarrassment and trying to prevent his second child from being born like you," Fiyero said sharply. "If he hadn't been so blind and stupid that he could not see past your skin colour, none of it would have happened. If your parents had researched the possible side effects of chewing milk flowers, it wouldn't have happened. You want to blame someone? Blame your parents. But not yourself, Fae. It wasn't you. You didn't do anything wrong."

She was looking at him, somehow hopeful, scared, and defeated all at the same time, her eyes filled with tears.

He pulled her back into his arms and she sobbed against his shoulder, clinging to him tightly.

* * *

When they walked back across campus some time later, Fiyero with his arm around Elphaba and she with her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "Yero?"

"Yes?"

She looked up at him. "Can I stay with you tonight?" she asked softly.

That surprised him. "Really?" He smoothed her hair away from her face and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Of course you can stay, if you want to, but… you've never stayed over in my room before. Except for that time after Avaric threw you in the canal." His face still darkened at the memory, but knowing how she felt about him wanting revenge on the other boy, he wisely kept his mouth shut.

"I just… don't want to face Galinda right now," Elphaba said with a sigh. "She's going to be all dramatic again about how I tried to 'kill myself', and she'll pester me with questions and well-meant advice on what to do about Nessa… I don't want that. I just want to go someplace quiet and do _nothing_."

He smiled. "Well, I'm good at doing nothing."

She chuckled wearily.

He brushed his fingers down her arm, drawing her closer. "I'll go talk to Glin," he promised her, "to tell her that you're alright and you will be staying with me, and I'll get your toothbrush and a nightgown." He kissed her softly. "Here's the key to my room – you go on ahead."

It took him about half an hour to really reassure Galinda that her roommate was perfectly fine and to hurriedly grab some things for Elphaba and flee the room. He understood now why Elphaba had been reluctant to go back there and sleep in the same room as the blonde. Frankly, he felt a sudden rush of sympathy and admiration for the green girl for rooming with Galinda for nearly a year already, listening to the blonde's ramblings and giggles night after night after night. The mere thought made him shudder.

When he finally entered his own room, Elphaba was sitting in the window sill, staring outside. She did not cry, but he could sense how sad she still was.

He slipped into the window sill to sit behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder. "You okay?"

She sighed and nodded.

"Fine."

"I don't believe you," he said.

She sighed again, but kept quiet.

They stayed like that for a while, neither of them saying a word.

Then Elphaba said softly, "How can you love me?"

Startled, he pulled back. "What?"

She kept her eyes glued to the window as she spoke.

"Look at me, Fiyero," she said, her voice flat. "It's not such a strange question."

He shook his head. "Oh, Fae…"

He let go of her and slid out of the window sill again so that he could look at her properly.

"You never believe me, do you?" he asked her. "When I tell you that you are beautiful."

She shrugged. "No. I'm not beautiful, Fiyero," she said, her voice barely audible. "It's like my father always told me – I'm ugly and unnatural and unwanted. I just don't understand why you can't see that."

His heart ached for her, but he didn't know what he could do, since he didn't seem to be able to convince her with words.

The silence between them slowly grew uncomfortable and Fiyero ran his fingers through his hair.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. "I'll go and get us something to eat."

She didn't protest and he left. When he got back, he found her in the exact same position he had left her in, and he was starting to grow worried about her.

Then his eye fell upon his guitar in the corner and he had an idea.

He put the food aside and grabbed the musical instrument, fiddling with it for a moment before starting to play – a song he had started to write for Elphaba quite some time ago. Back then he had rejected it as being too corny, but now, somehow, it suddenly seemed perfect.

He opened his mouth and sang.

"_You are so beautiful_

_To me._"

Her head whipped around, eyes wide, and he smiled at her.

"_You are so beautiful_

_To me_

_Can't you see?_

_You're everything I hoped for_

_You're everything I need_

_You are so beautiful_

_Oh so beautiful_

_To me."_

That was all he had written so far; but judging by the expression on Elphaba's face, it was enough. She was staring at him, her dark eyes looking all the bigger for the tears that were shining inside of them, and Fiyero put down his guitar and sat there, not saying anything, just looking at her.

She stayed frozen in place, just blinking at him, but not moving otherwise.

"You…" she stammered after a while. "I mean…"

"It's true," he said simply. He rose to his feet and knelt down in front of her, looking into her eyes.

"If you can't accept that you are beautiful," he said, "then at least try to accept that I seeyou that way."

She surprised him by suddenly kissing him fiercely, winding her arms around his neck.

"I love you," she told him breathlessly when they broke apart.

He chuckled softly and kissed her again. "I love you, too."


	17. Letting go

**AN: So I'm just sitting here at the neighbours' place, babysitting, stuffing myself with chips and crying as I read all the tweets about Willemijn's final performance, which has just ended... and I decided I might as well post a new chapter.**

**The song in the previous chapter was '_You Are So Beautiful_' by Joe Cocker.**

**Also, since the only thing that helps me stop crying over Willemijn right now seems to be Fiyeraba fluff, and I got inspired by a song earlier today... look out for a cute one-shot.**

* * *

**Chapter 17. Letting go**

"Yero?" Elphaba asked some time after that. They had eaten dinner in silence, both of them still thinking about their earlier conversation; and now they were sitting on the couch in front of the fire, cuddled up against one another.

Fiyero planted a kiss on her hair. "Yes, sweetheart?"

She sat up a little straighter. "Why did you turn that picture around?"

He followed her gaze. When he realised she meant the photograph of Aliyra, he swallowed with difficulty. He rose to his feet and grabbed the photograph, staring down at it for a moment before taking it back to Elphaba and showing it to her.

"Because," he said, his voice sounding a little strangled, "sometimes I just can't stand her looking at me… or me having to look at her."

The green girl next to him looked up at him with mild concern in her dark eyes and he sighed.

"Her name was Aliyra," he said quietly. "She died five years ago."

Elphaba placed a comforting hand on his arm.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

He forced a smile and stared down at the picture for a moment longer before standing again and pushing it underneath a pile of papers on his desk, not elaborating on who the girl was or what exactly happened. After all this time, he still couldn't stand to talk about her.

Elphaba was watching him, but she did not say anything, and he did not bring it up again. Instead, he sat down beside her once more and pulled her into his arms, starting to rub her once again tense shoulders.

She sighed softly and leant back against him, and he smiled. "If it were up to me, you'd spend every night in my room," he whispered in her ear.

She twisted her head to the side to give him better access to her neck. "Galinda would never forgive me, though."

"Is that the only reason you won't consider it?" he teased as he slowly pulled the sleeves of her dress down, trailing his lips down her neck and planting a soft kiss on her shoulder before continuing to massage her neck and shoulders.

After a while, he lifted her up in his arms and carried her over to the bed, laying her down on her stomach so that he had better access to her back. He could feel her slowly relaxing beneath his hands and he smiled.

"Is this nice?"

"Nice?" She stretched like a cat, moaning softly when he worked out another kink in her back. "Oz, Fiyero, this is amazing. Don't stop."

He grinned wickedly, planting a kiss at the back of her neck, just above the collar of her blouse; and then another one on her lower back, below the hemline of the offending garment. Oz, he wished he could take that off. He allowed himself to indulge in the daydream for just a moment before shaking his head, forcing himself back to the present.

He stroked her back, watching her face as she murmured encouragements into his pillow.

"You are so beautiful," he whispered, kneading her stiff shoulders, "to me…"

She smiled.

He turned her around, so that she was lying on her back.

"You," he told her, "are amazing, Fae, in every way possible; and I'm going to do everything in my power to make you see that, too."

She sighed, shaking her head, even though she was smiling. "If you say so."

He could tell that she was trying to indulge him, so he pinned her down beneath him and tickled her sides, making her squirm and gasp for breath.

"You are," he told her firmly, "and I will, if it's the last thing I'll ever do."

Now her smile was a little sad. "Honestly, Fiyero…" She shook her head. "I don't think you're going to succeed."

She leant up to kiss him softly. "But thank you for trying."

He laced their fingers together and squeezed her hand, kissing her back. He ran his fingers through her hair, marvelling at the soft, silky feel of it, and played with the dark strands. She sighed happily and he peppered her face with kisses, smiling at the look on her face. For the umpteenth time, he wondered how she, along with practically the rest of Oz, couldn't see how beautiful she was. It was clear as day, really.

He ran his hands down her arms, stroking her hair and her back, and she snuggled up against him with a small yawn. He grinned at the adorable picture she made and he kissed her nose, causing her eyes to open.

"Let's go to sleep," he suggested.

She nodded, eyes already closing again. "'Night, Yero."

He pulled the blanket over them both and watched as she curled up on her side, her faced buried in his neck. He pressed a kiss to her hair and then allowed himself to start drifting off as well.

"'Night, Ali," he murmured.

He froze, immediately realising his mistake; but Elphaba hadn't heard. She was already fast asleep.

_Five years,_ he reminded himself once again. _You've got Elphaba now. It's time to let Aliyra go._

Promising himself that he would, he tried to reassure himself.

Still he did not fall asleep for hours, thoughts and memories running through his head that he just did not seem able to stop.

* * *

Fiyero walked Elphaba back to her dorm room the next morning, where the green girl spent the first half hour patiently answering all of Galinda's questions, before they were interrupted by a knock on the door. The visitor turned out to be Nessarose, completely in tears, who apologised profusely for everything she had said the day before.

"I was just upset because of Boq," she wept, "and then I got angry, but I didn't mean it, Fabala, really! I'm so sorry, will you please forgive me?"

Elphaba, of course, immediately did – much to Galinda and Fiyero's chagrin.

"If I were you, I would have made her squirm for a few more hours," said Galinda with a scowl.

"Or weeks," Fiyero muttered under his breath.

Galinda giggled, even as Elphaba threw him a warning look.

"What about Boq?" the dark-haired witch asked her younger sister, who immediately brightened.

"We made up," she said, beaming. "He apologised, and then I apologised, and then we agreed to go out for dinner tonight. We're back together!"

"I never thought I would say this," Elphaba said when the wheelchair-bound girl had left again, "but she is worse than Galinda."

Galinda crossed her arms indignantly. "Hey!"

"You once broke up with a boy because he accidentally called you 'Glinda'," Elphaba pointed out.

"It is my _name_! He ought to have known it by then!"

"You had known each other for barely six hours!"

Fiyero chuckled. "That does sound like you, Glin."

"And then when you were dating that other boy, just before Lurlinemas," Elphaba reminded her friend, "you and him broke up and got back together about four times in the one week you were dating."

Galinda giggled. "Okay, I see your point."

Elphaba pulled out a stack of books she would need for her classes and for studying today. "I'm glad Nessa came to apologise, though… even though she was right." She sighed.

"Hey." Fiyero tilted her chin up, looking into her eyes. "What did I tell you yesterday?" he asked pointedly.

She chuckled weakly. "I know, Fiyero. Believe me, I know." She shook her head. "But this… what Nessa said… it's what I have been believing my whole life long. You know that. Everyone always told me these things, and… and I know you mean well, and you want to help, but it's just not that easy."

"Don't give up," Galinda advised the prince in a stage whisper. "She's right – it's not so easy that you can get her to see her own amazifyingness in one night, but you'll get through to her eventually."

Fiyero grinned at the blonde.

"I know," he said. "She's stubborn, but I can be, too."

"I am right here, you know," said Elphaba, waving a hand. "Though maybe I should just get to class now and leave you to it, so that you can gossip about me without me overhearing everything."

"It's not gossiping!" Galinda protested, but Elphaba just raised an eyebrow at her and the blonde huffed.

"I'll walk you to class," Fiyero offered, not having class himself until the afternoon.

Galinda, however, shook her head and stepped up next to Elphaba.

"Oh, no," she declared. "Elphie has been neglecting me enough already lately and we weren't done talking yet. _I _am walking with her to class. Especially since I have to go to that same class, anyway."

"You're actually going?" Fiyero teased her, but his only reply was a glare.

He chuckled and kissed Elphaba. "Piano lesson tonight at eight?"

She smiled and nodded, and he kissed her again before leaving.

"Elphie," Galinda said in a whiny voice as they walked to class together, "I was serious, you know. Everything you do lately, you do with Fiyero. I miss you!"

"Glin, I'm right here!" Elphaba said. "We live in the same room!"

When she thought about it, though, she realised that the blonde was right. She could hardly even remember the last time she had done something nice with Galinda. It was always either just Elphaba and Fiyero or them and the entire group; and even then, they mostly paid attention to one another. She did see Galinda in their dorm room every day, but they hadn't really talked or done something together in a long time.

Feeling guilty, Elphaba quickly scribbled a note during the lecture and pushed it onto Galinda's table.

_You're right. I'm sorry. Do you have plans on Saturday? I'll completely clear my schedule for you and we can go and do whatever you want._

She realised that did probably mean shopping, makeovers, or parties – or all three of them – but just this time, she decided to indulge Galinda and endure it for her sake.

When Galinda read the note, she positively beamed at Elphaba.

"Oh, Elphie, I'd love that!" she whispered loudly, squeezing her friend's arm. "Thank you!"

Elphaba squeezed back. "Sorry for neglecting you."

"It's fine, Elphie. We're going to have the most thrillifying time," Galinda declared. "I'll take you shopping, and then I'm going to give you a makeover… and maybe we could have lunch in town together, or go someplace fancy for dinner! Then we can dress up like fancy ladies!"

Elphaba obediently smiled and nodded. "That sounds like fun."

Her roommate giggled. "Oh, Elphie, you're so sweet. I'm only joking, you know. I know how much you hate shopping and fancy restaurants, after all." She looked at Elphaba. "How about we go and see a movie," she suggested, "then have lunch in town, and maybe we could do a tiny little bit of shopping afterwards, and have a nice dinner in town… and after that we'll go and get a drink at the Primrose Café and hang out there for a bit. Okay? And if you play it right," she leant towards her friend conspiratorially, "you might even drag me into a bookstore or two."

This time, Elphaba's smile was genuine. "You're amazing, Glin."

"I know," Galinda said with a giggle, tossing her hair. She grinned at Elphaba. "You're not so bad yourself."

The weeks passed slowly, with nothing special happening, which Elphaba was rather glad about. She kept herself busy with her studies, with Galinda – whom she was careful not to neglect again – and with Fiyero, and she was happy. Their relationship was going well, much to her own surprise. She kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but so far, nothing had happened yet… which could not be said for Nessarose and Boq, who seemed to break up and get back together again every other week.

When Elphaba met Fiyero in his room one night, he was sitting on the couch, grinning at her like an idiot as she came in.

"Okay," she said suspiciously, slowly approaching him. "What's up with you?"

He chuckled. "I got a letter from my parents today," he said.

She sank down onto the couch next to him. "Okay… and why does that make you so happy?" she asked. Fiyero and his parents wrote back and forth at least once a week – him having received a letter from the Vinkun king and queen was not really anything special.

"Because," he said, beaming at her, "they have invited you to come over for summer break. You can come home to the Vinkus with me, Fae! That way, we don't have to spend the summer apart!"

He was positively glowing, looking at her expectantly, and her heart broke.

"Yero…" she said quietly, and his face fell.

"That doesn't sound good," he said, trying to make a joke of it, but his smile was forced. "What's wrong? Don't you want to spend the vacation with me?"

"Of course I do!" Elphaba assured him quickly. "That's not it at all!"

Fiyero, however, was looking hurt. "What is it, then?"

She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I… I just can't," she said quietly. "Father would never let me, Fiyero. I have to go home and take care of Nessa."

"I'll invite Nessa, too, then!" he tried desperately. "And your father… please, Fae!"

"I'll ask him," said Elphaba. "But I already know he's not going to allow me to go. I'm sorry, Fiyero. I'd love to come to the Vinkus with you, I really would, but I can't."

He nodded stiffly. "It's okay," he said. "I understand."

She looked up at him, noticing the way he had set his jaw and the look in his eyes, and she sighed.

"You're mad at me."

"Of course not," he said rather harshly. "It's not like you can help it."

She kept on looking at him until he caved.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking down in shame. "It's just… I'm just disappointed. I've kind of been planning everything out in my head already, making a list of everything I want to show you and do with you, the people I want you to meet…"

She took his hand.

"It was a great idea, Yero," she said softly. "Thank you for asking your parents."

He gave her a half-smile. She wrapped her arms around him, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"I was already looking forward to it," he said sadly. "I could show you the gardens at my home, and the library… and I wanted you to meet my parents…" He sighed.

"I would have loved to see it all," she said, "and to meet your family, Yero… but we'll get our chance." She raised her head to look at him. "Maybe," she said a bit hesitantly, "maybe if I plead with him, he'd let me go for a few weeks… I'll ask Nessa if she wants to come as well – if she asks Father, we might have a chance."

Fiyero brightened at that. "You could try that," he agreed eagerly. "I could invite Boq and Galinda, too – then you two will have an escort from Munchkinland, and Nessa won't be lonely if you and I spend a lot of time together…"

Elphaba smiled and kissed him.

"I'll ask Father," she promised.


	18. Aliyra

**AN: Okay, I lied. There's drama in this chapter. And kind of a mean cliffy-ish thing, too. But the major drama is from Ch.20 onward.**

**Welcome back, BlueD!**

**18lzytwner: Next chapter ;).**

**Knowing what will happen, your predictions about Elphaba spending the summer in the Vinkus are incredibly funny to me.**

**Thedoctor24601, to your review on _Rude_: Yes, that was me, though I don't currently remember the story it was in xD. _Love is all you need_, probably. The song is called _Let Me Love You_. The original version is from Ne-Yo, but I prefer the cover from Glee, which is piano only, just like in the story._  
_**

**This chapter is dedicated to The Wizard Of Wicked for, once more, being my 300th reviewer! Love your speech, thank you so much, and hereby I send you virtual pie as a reward! *cackles***

* * *

**Chapter 18. Aliyra**

When they were sitting in class one day, Fiyero was jolted from his thoughts by an elbow between his ribs. "_Fiyero_!"

"Huh?" he said, dazed, looking to his side. Elphaba was stifling laughter. Galinda was glowering at him.

"Have you not heard a word I said?" she demanded in a high-pitched voice.

He made a face. "Sorry, Glin," he apologised, trying to sound as sincere as he could. "I was just… lost in thought."

"There seems to be a lot of that going on lately," Galinda huffed. "It's great that Elphie made you think, but this is starting to get ridiculous. What are you even thinking about all the time?"

He eyed Elphaba up and down suggestively, licking his lips none too subtly. She blushed furiously and he gave her a lopsided grin.

"Oh, nothing," he answered Galinda, his eyes still on Elphaba. "I was just… daydreaming."

Elphaba shook her loose hair in front of her face and bent over her notes in order to hide her dark red cheeks and Galinda heaved a sigh.

"That would be so adorable if it weren't so annoying," she mumbled.

Fiyero wished he could touch Elphaba, but somehow Galinda had managed to claim the seat between the green girl and the Vinkun prince; and every time Fiyero tried to reach out for his girlfriend, the blonde would glare daggers at him and swat at his arm. It was really getting irritating.

Galinda looked over to Elphaba's other side, where Nessarose was sitting, filling her notebook with doodles of '_I heart Boq_' and '_Mrs. Boq Parlone_'.

"That's it," Galinda declared gruffly. "I'm finding myself a boyfriend."

Elphaba patted her roommate's arm absently. "That will probably take you about ten clock-ticks."

Galinda giggled and tossed her hair. "You're so sweet, Elphie," she gushed. "And you're right, too."

Fiyero and Elphaba rolled their eyes in unison.

Fiyero lost himself in thought again. In his current daydream, he was giving Elphaba a back massage again and she asked him if he would find it easier if she took off her shirt… only she was wearing a dress, and so she ended up on his bed in just her slip. He pictured her face, eyes half-closed and a smile on her lips, as he worked out the kinks in her back… and of course she'd give him an appropriate reward afterwards. He heaved a sigh, smiling himself now, and opened his eyes to look at her. He still couldn't believe she was really his now.

Feeling his eyes on her, she looked up at met his gaze; and when she saw his smile, she smiled back a little shyly. He wiggled his eyebrows and she quickly looked back down at her notes, her cheeks heating up again. He chuckled at her reaction and tried to focus once more on the professor's lecture.

Instead, he found himself thinking about Aliyra.

He had been thinking about her a lot lately. He still wondered sometimes if she was the only reason he loved Elphaba, maybe… even though he knew by now that that could not be all. They weren't _that _alike. He was pretty sure he loved Elphaba because she was… well, Elphaba.

Aliyra, though, just kept forcing herself on him, unable to leave him alone. He had been dreaming of her lately, too. He had put away all of her pictures, yet she was always there.

Sometimes he wondered if he was really over her. Sometimes he wondered if this was the right way for him to deal with it all. Sometimes he wondered if maybe he had gone all wrong about this… okay, he was pretty sure he had. The partying, the drinking, and the girls had just been a distraction, an attempt to keep himself from remembering and from grieving… an attempt to forget. Had he ever even really grieved for her? He wasn't sure. Was that what was holding him back now?

Maybe that was also why he still, after five years, could not talk about her. Not even to Elphaba. He wanted to tell her about Aliyra and there had been several times when he had been about to, and yet he just couldn't get the words out. She invaded his thoughts, his mind, his feelings, and his dreams; and for the first time ever, he wished she would just disappear.

Immediately after thinking that, he felt guilty.

"Fiyero!" Galinda hissed beside him and he sighed, shaking himself from his thoughts once again.

"Yes?"

The blonde threw her hands up into the air. "Never mind."

He was about to reply when there came a knock on the door and everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

The professor seemed a little irritated. "Can I help you?"

The girl standing in the doorway leant against the door with a bored expression on her face. "I'm new," she said as an explanation. "Is this Life Sciences?"

The professor nodded and gestured for her to take a seat, which she did. Most students focused on the lecture again after that, not really paying much more attention to the new girl. Fiyero, however, was staring at her with his mouth wide open.

"Aliyra," he whispered.

Galinda looked at him curiously. "What?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Elphaba had noticed him staring and the moment she took in the girl's appearance properly, she knew why Fiyero was so shocked. The copper-coloured hair, freckles, full lips, and hazel eyes… this girl was basically the spitting image of Aliyra.

She looked at Fiyero again, who was still gaping at the girl, and she sighed. She couldn't really blame him. Even if the girl did not look so much like a now-deceased girl from Fiyero's past, she was so beautiful that she probably attracted stared from every boy on campus, taken or not… and Elphaba could only imagine how he must feel now, all his memories probably re-surfacing.

That did not mean she had to like it, however.

* * *

"How is it even possible that they look so much alike?" Elphaba wondered aloud that night, when she was sitting at the piano in the music room with Fiyero.

He sighed irritably. "Can we please stop talking about her?"

Elphaba frowned. "No," she said a little more bitingly than she had intended. "We cannot stop talking about the girl you have been staring at all throughout the day."

Now he looked guilty. "It's not what you think."

"Of course it's what I think," she said matter-of-factly. "She resembles someone who died and whom you loved a lot. I get it, Fiyero." She shook her head. "It's just strange, and I still don't understand why you can't talk about it," she said, noticing the way his face darkened. "It's not healthy to keep everything in."

He snorted. "Look who's talking."

She fell silent, staring down at the piano keys. She just did not know how to get through to him. He didn't seem to understand what she was saying – or maybe he just did not _want_ to understand.

"Here." He covered her hand with his own, gently moving her fingers. "It's easier if you press this key with your ring finger, rather than your middle one."

Recognising his peace offering, she adjusted her fingers on the keys, pressing them. He smiled and she carefully started playing one of the melodies he had tried to teach her since they had started.

When she finished, he kissed her cheek lingeringly. "You are amazing."

She smiled, but it was a little forced.

They played for a little while longer, with Fiyero teaching her some new chords and tricks and trying to teach her how to play the song they had written together on the piano. She relaxed again after a while, trying her hardest and feeling giddy every time she got it right. Fiyero praised her exuberantly, seemingly to make up for his earlier curtness with her, and she decided to just let it slide. She understood that he must be upset. It was strange, after all.

When they were in Fiyero's room a few days later – Elphaba sitting hunched over her notes at his desk, studying; Fiyero lying on his back on the bed and tossing a pillow into the air, then catching it again, bored out of his mind – Fiyero suddenly said, "They're not related."

Elphaba looked up, slightly disturbed. "What?" she asked, blinking.

"The new girl and Aliyra," said Fiyero, throwing his pillow up again, then catching it. "They're not related. No way they can be. Cedence's father is from Quadling Country and her mother is from Munchkinland. She told me everything she knew about her family tree and for as far as I can tell, there's not a drop of Vinkun blood in her body."

Elphaba removed her glasses, suddenly feeling unsettled, a knot in her stomach.

"So the new girl's name is Cedence," she stated, trying to keep her voice neutral. That made sense – a beautiful name for a beautiful girl. "And you talked. Quite a lot, from the sound of it."

"Yeah, I went to sit next to her in my Politics class," Fiyero said, completely oblivious to the way the raven-haired girl was feeling. "She told me everything about her family and she asked a lot of questions about the Vinkus, what it was like living there, things like that… she knew a lot about me – my reputation, you know, the partying and the girls, and stuff like that."

Elphaba swallowed, but for some reason, the lump in her throat seemed determined to stay exactly where it was.

"She's not like Aliyra at all when it comes to personality." Fiyero pushed himself up into a half-sitting position, looking at Elphaba. "She's not really deep, or anything, but she's kind of fun to hang out with."

Forcing herself to smile, Elphaba managed to say, "I'm glad you found yourself another friend."

Fiyero, finally sensing that something was wrong, frowned. "Fae? Is everything okay?"

"Sure," she said miserably, staring down at her notes. She shook her head and took a deep breath. "You know what? No, I'm not okay. I've got a really bad headache, suddenly. I think I'm going to go home."

Fiyero looked at her, mildly surprised. "Are you sure?" he asked. "Would it help if I massaged your shoulders? Sometimes tense muscles can cause headaches, and –"

"Maybe later." Elphaba gathered her things and swung her bag over her shoulder.

"Do you want me to walk you home?" Fiyero called after her as she yanked open the door.

"That won't be necessary," she said. "I'll be fine. Bye, Fiyero." With that, she left, quietly closing the door behind her.

* * *

"You're jealous," Fiyero accused the next time he spoke to her, which was a few days later. Three days, in fact, in which she had managed to avoid him, despite the fact that they had the same classes. Frankly, he was amazed at her ability to find a seat where he could impossibly reach her or come anywhere near her; and somehow him waiting for her at the beginning and the end of class hadn't worked, either. He still wasn't sure if she just moved faster than a strike of lightning or managed to blend in with the crowd very well. For the only girl on campus with green skin, she was surprisingly adept at hiding.

Now, Elphaba's head shot up, her jaw dropping slightly. "What?"

Fiyero swallowed a bite of his lunch and waved his fork at her. "You're jealous because I'm spending so much time with Cedence," he said. "I get it, Fae. It's okay. I didn't really think of how it would seem to you… I'm sorry. It's just that she reminded me so much of Ali, and then once we started talking, she turned out to be really nice… but there's no reason for you to be jealous, Fae, really. I promise. Nothing happened and nothing ever will happen. Cedence and I are just friends."

"I," she said angrily, stabbing her salad as if it had done something horrible to her, "am not _jealous_, Fiyero. I'm not like those petty girls who squeal indignantly all over the fact that their boyfriend was talking to another girl. You're entitled to have friends, no matter how female or beautiful they are and no matter how much they resemble _your dead girlfriend_."

Fiyero looked as though she had slapped him and Elphaba wanted to kick herself at the hurt look in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," she apologised immediately, lowering her eyes. "That was insensitive of me."

"It's fine," he said, but his voice sounded strange even to his own ears.

Elphaba looked at him in concern. "Yero? I'm really sorry," she said again, biting her lip. "I shouldn't have said that… it came out completely wrong."

"It's okay, Elphaba." The fact that he didn't call her 'Fae' told her enough. "I'm finished." He pushed his half-full plate away from him and rose to his feet. "I'm going back to class. I'll see you around."

With that, he left.

There seemed to be a lot of that going on lately, Elphaba thought sadly as she finished her salad, even though her appetite was all but gone now. She wasn't sure where it had gone wrong, but she and Fiyero seemed to be fighting a lot lately, mostly over stupid things. It wasn't even fighting, really – there was no yelling involved… just quiet accusations, or mean remarks, or insensitive words – that, and a lot of disappointment and sadness.

She looked up when Nessarose wheeled herself up to her sister, looking angry.

"Boq broke up with me again," she said, frowning. "I can't believe the nerve of that boy. He should be grateful to have me!"

"Maybe you should be more grateful to have him," Elphaba said softly, thinking about her own situation with Fiyero.

Nessa's frown deepened. "No," she said. "It's the other way around. Sometimes I think he simply does not deserve me."

Elphaba sighed sadly. "I know what you mean." No-one deserved a green-skinned freak for a girlfriend, after all.

"Do you?" Nessa eyed her sister, raising one eyebrow. "Fabala? What's wrong?"

The green girl waved her away. "Nothing."

What if that was it? What if Fiyero had finally come to his senses and realised who exactly he was dating? The frog girl, the artichoke, the school outcast… the aberration. She stared down at the table, a thousand thoughts running through her head. Meeting Cedence and befriending her had probably convinced him of the fact that he was much better off without Elphaba. Cedence was so much prettier than Elphaba could ever hope to be, and then there was the fact that she looked like Aliyra… Fiyero still hadn't told her who Aliyra was, exactly; but she was pretty sure she knew the answer. She must have been a girlfriend of Fiyero's. A fiancée, maybe… or even a wife, if it had been an arranged marriage. She knew those things were rather traditional in the Vinkus.

In any case, it was obvious that Fiyero had loved this girl very much and that he still did. She'd heard him, murmuring Aliyra's name in his sleep. One or two times, he had accidentally called Elphaba 'Ali'. She always pretended not to hear.

But maybe she could no longer ignore it.

Maybe she just had to face the fact that Fiyero was completely done with her.

* * *

**Reviews are like pie to me! *cackles some more* Sorry, I couldn't resist.**


	19. Crazy little thing called love

**AN: So I decided to be nice and not leave you with the horrible Ch.20 before I go on holiday, but with this sweet and cliffyless Ch.19.**

**Your reviews made me laugh. You should all know by now that I will NEVER stop mentioning pie. *cackles***

**Nia: Why, thank you! *takes both apple and pumpkin pie because they both seem delicious* Omnomnom...**

**So I will be leaving for Portugal tomorrow, but don't worry, my pretties - I have wifi and I'm taking my laptop. Updates may take a little longer or be more irregular, but I will update!**

* * *

**Chapter 19. Crazy little thing called love**

"I'm really sorry."

He looked at her, standing in his doorway like that – eyes downcast, fidgeting with the hem of her dress, looking guilty, sad, and altogether miserable… and he hated himself.

"No," he said, heaving a tired sigh. "I'm sorry. I haven't been myself lately, Fae, I know… meeting Cedence, seeing her every day, looking so much like Ali… it's been hard," he admitted. "And I know I've been acting weird and not at all like myself, especially when it comes to you… and I'm sorry. That wasn't fair of me."

She looked up at him, her chocolate brown eyes so hopeful; and he drew her into his arms and kissed her softly, pulling her into his room and kicking the door shut.

He held her as she buried her face in his neck, feeling her wet tears on his skin.

"So you… you're not sick of me?" she asked, her voice small and trembling.

He was shocked. "No!" He pulled away, tilting her chin up and looking into her eyes.

"I love you," he told her honestly. "Fae… I could never get sick of you. I love you." He hugged her again, clasping her tightly to him. "I'm so sorry if I gave you the impression that… oh, sweet Oz, I'm such an ass!" he exclaimed, loathing himself for what he had done and how he had made her feel. He planted soft kisses on her hair, then down to her forehead, her eyelids, her nose, her cheeks, her jaw, and finally her lips. She kissed him back, winding her arms around his neck. He kissed away the traces of her tears on her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," he whispered again.

"It's okay," she said softly. "I was… I wasn't being fair, either. I understand, I really do. I was just… jealous," she admitted reluctantly with a sigh, and he nodded.

"I understand that, too."

She laid her head against his shoulder. "Can we just pretend this all never happened?"

"Of course." He smoothed her hair down her back, running his fingers through the silky strands once again. He kissed her, again and again and again, whispering his adoration for her in between kisses, making her blush. They snuggled in front of the fire together, drinking tea and having some sandwiches for dinner, not talking much, but feeling all the more.

He gave her a thorough back massage after that that left her moaning and sighing happily, squirming underneath him as he forced her muscles to relax completely and worked out every knot he could find. Her skin was so soft underneath his fingertips and he planted kiss after kiss on it, unable to resist. He stroked her back, leaning down to wrap his arms around her and press his cheek to her upper back.

"I love you," he whispered again.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open and she stretched, causing him to sit up again.

She half-turned around to look at him. "Should we talk?"

He sighed, reluctant. "Maybe."

Elphaba looked up at him. Her dark eyes were opaque and unreadable, her voice steady, but soft as she asked, "So who was she, exactly?"

She didn't have to elaborate on who she meant.

Fiyero rubbed his face, closing his eyes for a moment. Then he opened them again and looked down at Elphaba. He didn't really want to talk about this, but maybe it was time he did.

He shifted off her to sit down beside her instead, crossing his legs.

"Aliyra… she was my fiancée," he said, feeling the familiar pang at the memory of her.

Elphaba just kept on looking at him, waiting for more.

He leant his head back against the wall and closed his eyes again.

"My parents, as you know, are the king and queen of the Vinkus," he said. "Hers were the clan heads of one of the tribes in the Northern Vinkus. She was about a year younger than I was… our parents thought it would be a good match." He shrugged. "I was basically engaged before I was even two years old, though of course I didn't know that back then."

He took Elphaba's hand and rubbed soft circles on the back of it with his thumb, lost in memories.

"Our parents visited a lot, back and forth, so that we could really get to know one another," he said quietly. "Ali and I became very close friends, even as children. When I turned twelve, I was told about our engagement. We were supposed to get married once Aliyra would be eighteen, but we spent a lot of time together and already carried out some royal duties before we reached that age. And even though it was an arranged marriage… I loved her. I really did. We truly did love one another, even though no-one understood."

"Because it was forced, people didn't believe it was real," Elphaba translated.

Fiyero nodded. "They never did." He swallowed back tears, determined not to cry. He hadn't cried over Aliyra in a long time and he refused to start now. "Even when she died, people didn't believe I was genuinely grieving. No-one but my parents, who had known her very well and were grieving for her, too. Dad mostly kept busy with arranging things – she was the heir to the position of clan head, after all, and she was the future Vinkun queen… lots of things had to be taken care of, talked through, and smoothed over. He buried himself in work and Mum buried herself in me, even though all the hugs and comforting and kind words in the world didn't help me back then."

They both remained silent for a while, Fiyero thinking back, Elphaba processing the story.

Finally, she said in a small voice, "I'm sorry she died."

Fiyero smiled sadly, squeezing the young witch closer.

"Me, too," he said. "But now I've got you… and I love you, Fae. I really do. You have to believe that. I just… don't think I was, or am… completely over Ali yet." He sighed, running his hands through his hair. "It was why I started dancing through life – to deal with the pain. And even though it didn't make the pain go away… it did numb me. I prevented myself from feeling anything, from processing it. I drowned myself in beer and parties and girls. And now… you forced me out of that fake bubble of carelessness, Fae, and I'm so grateful for that, but it also brought back the pain. I guess I just need to go through that in order to be able to leave it behind me."

When he looked down at Elphaba, she was smiling.

"You're amazing, Yero," she whispered. "You were so brave, dropping that happy-go-lucky façade and facing your feelings again like that… I'm really proud of you. And I don't know if it helps, but if you want to talk, or cry, or anything, really… I'm here for you. I want to help you."

He stared down at her in amazement.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" he asked her after a while, still in awe.

She chuckled mirthlessly. "Whatever it was, it must have been something horrible," she said wryly.

He tapped her nose to chide her. "Don't talk like that. You are wonderful, Fae, I told you that so many times already. You're perfect and I love you so much." He kissed her again, softly and tenderly; and her eyes fluttered shut as she gave in to the kiss, melting in his arms.

They fell asleep like that not long thereafter, she with her head tucked under his chin and he with his arms around her.

* * *

When she awoke in the morning, she blinked and squinted against the bright sunlight streaming into the room. Realising they had forgotten to close the curtains the night before, she moaned and made to turn around again, but then she realised the time and she shot up. If they didn't hurry, they were going to be late for class.

Fiyero tightened his grip on her, murmuring indignantly, and she shook him. "Yero, get up."

"Hmph."

"Yero, we'll be late for class."

He pulled her back against him, burying his face in her hair to shut out the light. When his lips fell on her neck, she closed her eyes, deciding that class could wait for a few more minutes.

After a while, she heard him snore softly and she stifled a laugh. "Yero?" She prodded him gently. "Are you even awake? Come on, wake up."

"Mm." He stretched, then turned around.

"Yero!"

He stirred slightly. "Ali?"

For some reason, it did not bother her so much anymore. Maybe because he had opened up to her now, and she knew that it had nothing to do with her; he was just still processing what had happened, and he had probably dreamt about Aliyra again. It wasn't his fault and it wasn't hers, either.

So instead of stiffening and leaving, as she usually did, she just said, "No, it's me."

His eyes flew open when he realised what he had said and he sat up, looking guilty. "Shiz. I'm sorry, Fae –" he began apologetically, but she cut him off with a kiss.

"It's fine," she said. "I understand."

He looked at her for a long time, once again amazed at her understanding and forgiveness.

"You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you senseless right now," he said eventually.

She chuckled. "What's keeping you?" she teased, and he pretended to think about that.

"Good point."

With that, he swept her in his arms and kissed her deeply, tangling his fingers in her hair. She kissed him back for a while, but then she pulled away from him.

"No more delaying now," she said sternly. "Class."

He sulked, pouting. "Can't we just –"

"No. Come on." She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and rose to her feet, padding across the room as she collected her clothes and got ready for the day, feeling ten tons lighter than she had the day before.

Fiyero didn't even come out of bed until she was already dressed and ready to go. Luckily, he didn't need much time to get ready and so they walked off to the cafeteria ten minutes later to go and get breakfast.

Nessarose and Boq were already there, sitting at a table for two in the corner. They were holding hands across the table and Boq was feeding the younger Thropp sister pieces of fruit and toast, each bite followed by a kiss. Boq was smiling and Nessa was giggling.

Elphaba cast her eyes heavenward and Fiyero chuckled.

"Didn't you say they broke up yesterday?" he asked, amused.

"Like I said," said Elphaba drily, "they're worse than Galinda and her boyfriends."

When they finished their first class of the day and Fiyero left her side for a moment to talk to Boq about something, Galinda linked arms with Elphaba, giving the green girl a significant look.

"Did something happen between you and Fiyero?" she asked lightly.

"Why are you asking?" Elphaba countered, shifting the strap of her bag on her shoulder.

Galinda shrugged. "You've been awfully gloomy lately," she said. "Both of you. It was a little strange. But now you seem back to your normal selves again… better, even, maybe."

"Maybe," Elphaba agreed softly. She sighed. "Yes, we did work some stuff out," she admitted. "But I can't tell you about it, Glin, I'm sorry. Fiyero told me some things in confidence."

"That's okay." Galinda beamed at her friend. "I'm just glad you and Fifi are happy again."

She started skipping. "Elphie, have you heard about the ball they're holding on the first day of June?" she gushed. "It's meant to end the school year, even though it's not over yet, you know, there's still finals first… but the End Year's Ball will be _great_, Elphie, absolutely _thrillifying_, and you and Fiyero simply_ have _to come."

"Glin –" Elphaba started protesting, but the blonde shushed her.

"No excuses, Elphie. Fiyero will agree with me."

"Fiyero will agree with you on what?" asked Fiyero, catching up with the girls and putting his arm around Elphaba's shoulders.

"That you and Elphie are coming to the End Year's Ball next week," Galinda answered and Fiyero's eyes lit up.

"No," Elphaba said when she saw the look on his face, before he could even say anything himself. "We're not going."

His face fell. "But Fae –"

"No, Yero."

"Fae, _please_," he pleaded with her. He made puppy eyes at her. "It will be so amazing, really! We'll dance and have fun, and Galinda will be there… Nessa and Boq, too – Boq already told me they're planning to go. It will be great and it's also a nice way of ending the school year, isn't it?" He pouted. "We might not see each other the entire summer long!"

Elphaba sighed. Her father had still not replied to the letter in which she asked him if she could visit the Vinkus for a few weeks in the summer, and she feared the worst.

"Pretty please, Elphie?" Galinda beseeched her, and Fiyero was still looking at her with big, hopeful eyes.

"Fae? Please?"

"The things I do for you two," she grunted finally. Fiyero and Galinda cheered, recognising this as her giving in, and Fiyero kissed her gently.

"It will be wonderful," he promised her.

"I'll make you look _perfect_!" Galinda squealed.

Elphaba's shoulders slumped. "I'm doomed."


	20. Dances with princes

**AN: I'm here! I didn't have wifi at all the first day, and just on my phone the next day - I was starting to fear I would have to leave this story on hiatus until I'd get back... but thanks to Dad, I have internet on my laptop now, so I can update. Hooray for my Dad!**

**Here it is - the feared Chapter 20. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 20. Dances with princes**

As Elphaba opened the door the night of the ball, she wondered for the umpteenth time why she had let Galinda and Fiyero talk her into this.

When she saw the look of utter and complete awe on Fiyero's face the moment he laid eyes on her, though, she remembered.

"How," he said, his voice sounding thick, "_how _can you _possibly _believe you are not beautiful?"

She fidgeted with her purse awkwardly.

"I don't look horrible, I suppose…" she conceded, still not looking convinced.

Fiyero shook his head and pulled her close, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss that left her completely breathless. When he let go, her face was flushed and she had to take a moment to catch her breath.

"You are beautiful," he told her firmly. "Gorgeous. Absolutely stunning. In fact, 'beautiful', 'gorgeous', and 'stunning' don't even remotely cover the way you look right now. Oz, Fae."

She blushed, shifting her weight from one high heel to another awkwardly; and he took her hand, trying to make her feel more at ease.

"Shall we go?"

They walked to the OzDust Ballroom, where the ball was being held, together. The moment they got there, they heard an excited squeal and Galinda came towards them, smiling widely and waving at them.

"Elphie!" she gushed once she reached them, slightly out of breath. "I _so _wish I could have seen Fiyero's face when he first saw you like this – you look so _beautiful_, Elphie! – but you know my date wanted to go a little early and I had agreed to meet the girls here, so… doesn't she look amazifying, Fiyero?"

"She does," he agreed softly.

The dress Elphaba was wearing was strapless and a dark purple colour. The front of the skirt reached her knees, but the skirt was long in the back, almost – though not quite – brushing the floor. It had a beaded sash just under the bust and it was made of a soft chiffon, which flowed down from her waist. Galinda had loaned her a pair of matching heels and her make-up had been kept light, but the blonde had made her roommate's hair into a real piece of art – all curls and braids and hair clasps, with purple and silver threads woven through it.

Fiyero held out his hand. "Do you want to dance?"

She shook her head, backing away. "No, thank you."

"I wasn't really asking." He grinned and pulled her towards him, all but dragging her over to the dance floor, despite her protests. He took her hand in his own and placed the other on her waist as he started to move to the music. She grumbled a little, but gave in.

"Why did you ask if you were going to take me dancing, anyway?" she demanded.

He chuckled. "I was trying to be polite."

She rolled her eyes.

Over Fiyero's shoulder, she could see Galinda dancing with her date, a sophomore. The blonde looked beautiful in a ball gown made of light green silk, with a poofy skirt and a sparkly bodice. She was wearing the tiara Fiyero had given her for her birthday and the jewellery set she had gotten from her parents. She looked beautiful and radiant as she swirled across the dance floor in the boy's arms and for the umpteenth time, Elphaba found herself wondering what Fiyero saw in _her _when he could have had Galinda.

His breath tickled her hair as he whispered in her ear, "I know that look. What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," she said a little too quickly.

He narrowed his eyes. "You're worrying about something," he stated. "That is your worry-look."

She huffed a laugh. "Yero…"

"Stop thinking and just dance," he told her. "Thinking is highly overrated, anyway."

This time her laugh was genuine. "Well, you would know," she teased him and he chuckled.

She tried to escape the dance floor once the song was over, but somehow, Fiyero managed to convince her to stay for another song… and the five songs after that.

She didn't really mind, though. Despite her dislike of dancing in general, she didn't find dancing with Fiyero such a bad thing – he was skilled enough to guide her through the steps without making her look like a total idiot and she liked being in his arms. It made her feel safe, somehow. Protected from the stares and whispers that always came her way.

That feeling instantly disappeared, however, when she caught sight of Cedence.

The girl was wearing a deep red dress that really brought out her eyes and shiny, copper-coloured hair… and that made her look more like Aliyra than ever, somehow – maybe because Aliyra also wore red in the picture on Fiyero's room. Elphaba stared at the girl, suddenly realising something.

Fiyero noticed the way she tensed in his arms and looked down at her in concern. "Fae?" When he saw that she was looking at something, he turned around to follow her gaze. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened.

Elphaba looked away, detaching herself from him, but he hardly seemed to notice.

She bit her lip. She was trying to be okay with all this, she really was; but she just couldn't help but feel that it was too soon. He was not over Aliyra yet, that much was clear, and maybe right now was just not the time for them. She feared he could never give her his full attention as long as he had not processed what had happened to his fiancée.

"Fiyero," she said.

He didn't respond. He was too busy staring at Cedence.

She punched his arm. "Fiyero!"

"Huh?" He shook his head and frowned at her, annoyed. "What was that for?"

"I'm just going to go and get a drink," she said, avoiding his eyes. "Can I get you something?"

He shook his head, already looking at Cedence again. "No, thanks."

He didn't say anything else and she made her way off the dance floor, tears stinging her eyes. Galinda caught her and started chattering to her about her date, but Elphaba wasn't listening. Her eyes were trained on Fiyero, who had made his way over to Cedence and was now talking to her. The girl was practically hanging around his neck, giggling and fluttering her eyelashes at him – Elphaba suspected she was drunk, or at the very least tipsy – and the dark-haired witch looked away, biting her lip.

Galinda, only now noticing her friend's demeanour, looking confused. "Elphie? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," the green girl choked out, but the blonde did not buy that for a clock-tick.

She followed Elphaba's gaze and grimaced sympathetically. "Oh, Elphie… he doesn't like her like that, you know. You're the only one he loves."

"He doesn't love Cedence," Elphaba agreed sadly. "But I'm not the only one he loves, either."

Galinda looked at her, puzzled; but Elphaba just turned around and walked to the table with refreshments to get herself something to drink. She stuck to the wall as she sipped it, watching Cedence flirting with Fiyero at the other side of the room, and she sighed.

When he finally detached himself from the overenthusiastic girl and made his way over to Elphaba again, he was smiling. His smile quickly faded, however, when he saw the look on Elphaba's face.

"Fae?" he asked her anxiously. "What's wrong?"

He tried to slip his arm around her waist, but she stepped aside.

"We need to talk," she told him.

She stalked through the crowd and out the door, stopping in a small courtyard, where she waited for Fiyero to catch up with her. Once he did, slightly out of breath from running after her, she looked up at him and said bluntly, "I think we should take a break."

He stared at her. "What?" he asked rather stupidly.

She repeated her words and he blinked at her, as if not understanding what she was saying.

"A break?" he echoed dumbly.

She took a deep breath. "Well, not a break, actually." She closed her eyes for a moment and then looked up at him again. "I think we should break up."

He just kept on staring at her.

"Is this because of Cedence?" he finally demanded and she hesitated.

"Not entirely," she said finally, lowering her eyes. "But it's part of it."

"Fae –"

"You're not over her, Fiyero," she said softly. "Over Aliyra. I believe you when you say that you love me, but I think you love her more."

"You think wrong," he protested, but she held up a hand to silence him.

"You're thinking about her all the time," she said. "You dream about her. You call me her name, and I tried not to mind. I really did. But seeing the way you were looking at Cedence just now, purely because she looks so much like Aliyra… it's not right. This… _us_… is not right. And I think we have to end it."

"How can you say that?" he asked, shocked. "I mean –"

She shook her head. "My decision is final," she said.

That rubbed him the wrong way. "It's not just your decision, you know," he snapped. "There are two people involved in this. I have a say, too. And I'm not letting you break up with me. Not for ridiculous reasons like the ones you just gave me."

A flash of hurt briefly crossed her face. "Those reasons are not ridiculous," she said icily. "They're the truth."

"We can work through this, Fae –"

"No, we can't. It's better if we end it now," she said again, sounding firm. "This was never right to begin with, Fiyero. You and Aliyra, _that _was right. She was beautiful and regal, a lady… I'm not any of those things. I'm not suitable for you and you know it."

He stared at her again. "So _that _is what this is really about," he said.

She narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"You being insecure," he said. "You still think you're not good enough for me, don't you? Because you're different… because you're green." He shook his head. "Fae, you're the most beautiful and the smartest person I know," he said, "but you're ridiculous."

"It's over, Fiyero," she spat at him. "Stop it. You can't change my mind."

"Oz dammit, Elphaba, just admit it!" he shouted. "Don't blame this on me, or on Aliyra, or on Cedence! Just _look into my eyes _and tell me why you want to break up with me!"

"Because you deserve better!" she yelled back at him. "Because you _had _someone better, and I can never live up to your expectations, Fiyero! I am not Aliyra and I never will be!"

"I don't want you to be!"

"Yes, you do, and we both know it." She turned around. "Goodbye, Fiyero."

He grabbed her arm, yanking her back a little rougher than he had intended.

"No," he declared gruffly. "I'm not letting you walk away from me, Fae. Not like this. I'm not letting you go so easily."

She tried to wrench herself free, but he just tightened his grip on her.

"I'm sorry," he said. "You're right about Aliyra – her death did hit me hard, and I understand it must be difficult for you to hear me talking about her all the time and… and everything… but I thought we had agreed to work through this together." His voice broke. "I can't do this without you, Fae."

She softened. "Yes, you can." She brought one hand up to cup his face. "You're strong," she told him. "Much stronger than you think. You'll be fine. But I think we need to keep our distance from one another for now… to give you the time to process what happened."

He eyed her warily.

"Okay?" she pressed.

"No," he said. "Not okay. Fae…"

"Stop it, Fiyero." She pulled herself free. "I can't do this anymore. Not like this."

"I'll change."

"No, you won't. Not until you take some time for yourself."

He sighed. "Fae… you'll only make things worse," he said pleadingly. "By doing this, you'll only drive me further away into my grief, and you'll drive yourself further into your insecurities, until neither of us will know a way out anymore. We need to stick together. Especially now. I love you. I need you… I need you to be there for me, and I know you need me, too. This is a bad idea, Fae. Please."

"No." Her eyes flamed. "Stop it."

"I'll never stop," he said. "I'm not letting you go."

"That's not up to you to decide," she hissed. "I'm going, whether you like it or not."

He sighed again, shoulders slumping. He had been a horrible boyfriend and he knew it… but he hadn't done it on purpose. He loved her.

"A break, then," he agreed wearily. "Just for a little while… if you think that's best. But nothing else. We're not breaking up, Fae."

"Yes, we are."

His eyes widened. "Elphaba!"

"What if a break is not enough?" she asked him quietly. "Fiyero… you'll always love Aliyra more than you love me, and I can't do that. I can't be your second choice."

"What?" he exclaimed, shocked. "How can you think that?"

"Oh, stop," she snarled. "We both know it's the truth!"

"No, it's not!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Oz dammit, Elphaba, where is this coming from? I thought we agreed to work on this. I thought we were going to be okay!"

"Well, maybe we're not!" She pulled herself free and wrapped her arms around her own waist, hugging herself. "It's just not right, Fiyero," she insisted. "You need a girl like Aliyra and I can't be that girl. I thought we could work through this, too, but it's been going on for so long already and I feel like it's not getting any better at all. We're just too different. Maybe this is just not meant to be. Not every story has a happy ending, Fiyero."

"Ours does," he said stubbornly. "Only you won't give it a chance."

She narrowed her eyes and turned around.

"Just… just stay away from me, Fiyero," she said over her shoulder, so quietly that he almost didn't hear her. "I'm done."

With that, she all but ran back into the ballroom. He tried to run after her, but found himself blocked by other people; and by the time he had made his way through the crowd and scanned the room for a glimpse of something green, Elphaba was already gone.

* * *

**Yep. I'm mean like that.**

**It's really beautiful out here, the view is wonderful, and it's very inspirational... so I'm working on a Fiyeraba summer fic. It includes summer, beach, Fiyeraba (duh) and... pie. The symbolic kind. I had the idea when I was looking at a dessert menu yesterday and got an overload of pie (among them was 'special pie', which sounded interesting). So. *cackles***


	21. Forgiveness

**AN: Ha. You didn't see that coming, did you? :P Also, I forgot again to show you Elphaba's dress from last chapter - it's on my blog, along with some info about the fics I am currently working on!**

**Guest: The short version of what is on aforementioned blog is that I'm currently completely stuck on _Frozen Love _and won't start posting it anytime soon... sorry :(. And no, I don't know that song, but thank you! :)****  
**

**Kudos to Elphaba'sGirl for pointing out my favourite line(s) :).**

* * *

**Chapter 21. Forgiveness**

"Fiyero, what did you do?" Galinda asked worriedly, taking hold of Fiyero's arm. "I just saw Elphie storming past me and out of the room. I tried to follow her, but there were all these people blocking the way, so I decided to go and find you instead. What happened?"

He sighed, leaning his arms on the bar and resting his head on top of them. "She broke up with me."

Galinda's eyes widened. "What?"

"She did," Fiyero said miserably. "I've been the worst boyfriend ever."

"What? No, Fiyero, I'm sure that's not true," Galinda tried, but Fiyero just sighed again.

"Yes, it is."

"What did you do, then?" Galinda wanted to know.

He picked up the glass standing in front of him and whirled the liquid around, staring down at it. Then he threw his head back and emptied the glass in one gulp.

"I was engaged once," he confessed to Galinda as he gestured for the bartender to refill his glass. "To a girl I loved. Aliyra."

Galinda gaped at him.

"She died," Fiyero said gruffly, giving her the short version. "Only I don't think I'm really over her yet and that bothered Fae… with good reason." He sighed once more. "I was a jerk. Not intentionally, but I was. And now she refuses to even give us another chance anymore." He took another sip of his drink. "I can't blame her."

"Oh, Fiyero…" Galinda's heart broke. "That is so sad, but… but I'm sure Elphie doesn't mean it. If you would just explain it all to her, she'd understand –"

"I told her everything," he interrupted her. "But it's just too hard for her. Would _you _stay with your boyfriend if he kept calling you his ex-fiancée's name and constantly stared at a girl from your class that looks a lot like said ex-fiancée?"

"Who?" Galinda asked and Fiyero nodded at Cedence.

Galinda suddenly understood Elphaba's behaviour. "Oh."

"She thinks she's not good enough for me." Fiyero emptied his glass again and asked for another. "She thinks I want her to be another Aliyra, but I don't. I really don't. I just… need to get over this, somehow. Only I don't know how, and now I've lost her and I just don't know what to do…"

In an impulse, Galinda hugged him.

"You'll be fine, Fiyero," she told him. "You'll be fine. Listen to me. I'll go back to our dorm room right now and I'm going to talk to Elphie. Okay? You just stay here – find some friends of yours, have some fun… I'll make sure she talks to you in the morning."

He nodded, clearly unconvinced. "Okay."

She patted his shoulder and then disappeared in the crowd. Fiyero emptied his third – or fourth? – glass and got up to find Avaric, determined to follow Galinda's advice and have some fun tonight… if only in an attempt to forget about his fight with Elphaba.

* * *

When Galinda entered the room and found Elphaba in her bed, curled up on her side with her back towards the room, she smiled sadly. "Oh, Elphie…"

She sat down on the edge of her roommate's bed, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Elphie, you and Fiyero can work things out. I know you can. Just go talk to him, and –"

"What business is it of yours?" Elphaba snapped, sitting up and glaring at Galinda angrily. "Stay out of this, Galinda. You have nothing to do with it. Don't tell me what to do."

"I'm not," Galinda said, feeling offended and a little hurt. "I'm just trying to give you advice. It's what best friends do. I want you to be happy, Elphie."

"I'm not happy." Elphaba turned around again and crossed her arms. "I'll never be happy. I'm not meant to be happy."

Galinda reached for her friend, but Elphaba recoiled and the blonde dropped her hand.

"Just leave me alone, Galinda," the green girl said softly and Galinda sighed, but obliged. By the time she had changed into her nightgown, washed off her make-up and brushed her hair and teeth, Elphaba had huddled underneath the blankets and appeared to be asleep.

Galinda wasn't going to let her off the hook so easily, though. She just needed to talk to Elphie again in the morning. She was sure her friend would be much calmer and more open to Galinda's advice then.

Only the next morning when Galinda woke up, Elphaba's bed was empty.

The blonde sighed and flopped back into her pillows, staring at the ceiling. Of course the green girl was already up. Elphaba was always up before Galinda was. Now that she thought about it, maybe she should have set an alarm or something… but then again, that would have meant missing out on a few extra hours of very necessary beauty sleep, and she couldn't have that. What if she got wrinkles or dark circles under her eyes because of it? She wouldn't be able to leave the room and have to soak her face in hydrating facial cream all day!

She sat up, rubbing her eyes as she looked around the room. She frowned. Elphie's bag was still lying in a corner… so where was Elphie herself?

As if on cue, the bathroom door flew open and Elphaba came out, a toothbrush in her mouth as she tried to towel-dry her dripping wet hair and pull on her shoes at the same time.

"Elphie!" Galinda cried happily. "You're not gone yet!"

Elphaba cast a quick glance in her roommate's direction. "I will be in two minutes," she said, although with the toothbrush still in her mouth, it sounded more like, "Ahwohleeoeints".

"Why?" Galinda asked. "Do you have somewhere to be?"

"Breakfast with Nessa," Elphaba replied as she removed the toothbrush and disappeared in the bathroom again. Tying her hair back in a ponytail, she came back into the room and grabbed her bag.

Before she could leave, however, Galinda leapt out of bed and blocked the door. "Elphie, wait."

Elphaba lifted one eyebrow.

The blonde took a deep breath. "Elphie, _please _go talk to Fiyero."

Elphaba sighed wearily. "Glin…"

"I'm serious." The blonde looked at her friend solemnly. "He was so sad last night… he thinks he's been a horrible boyfriend to you. And maybe he was. I don't really know. But he feels really bad about it. He's miserable, Elphie. Please, just… talk to him. Give him another chance. I really think he won't mess it up this time."

Elphaba bit her lip.

"Please?" Galinda added.

Her friend sighed and conceded. "I'll think about it."

Galinda squealed. "Yay! Okay now, off you go – say hi to Nessa for me." She waved at Elphaba and fell down on her fluffy pink bed, heaving a happy sigh. Once Elphie and Fiyero would talk, everything would be alright again, she was sure of it.

* * *

Fiyero opened his eyes and immediately squeezed them shut again.

His head was pounding and his mouth was dry, which could really only mean one thing: he had been drinking too much last night. It had been a while since he had last felt this way, but he felt like the situation had warranted it. Just for one night.

He slowly blinked, peering through his eyelashes to allow his eyes and his throbbing head to slowly get used to the bright light in the room. His eyes widened, however, when he realised he was staring at a ceiling he had never seen before.

He shot up, ignoring his headache and nausea, and looked around him in bewilderment. He was in a dorm room decorated with soft yellows and oranges, with all kinds of stuff adorning the room – he was surrounded by photo frames, jewellery, make-up, cushions, books, and candles. This was most definitely not his own room. In fact, it did not look like a boys' dorm room, either.

And then he turned his head around and found himself staring into the hazel eyes of Cedence.

The first thing that came out of his mouth was a colourful curse and Cedence shook her head with a small smile. "Well, good morning to you, too."

Fiyero wanted to kick himself all the way back to the Vinkus. What had he done? He scrambled up, pushing both his hands through his messy hair. "Cedence…"

She raised one eyebrow.

He moaned. "Oh, Oz, what did I do?" He buried his face in his hands.

Cedence chuckled. "Relax, Fiyero," she said, amused. "Nothing happened."

He peered at her from between his fingers. "What?"

"If you weren't currently experiencing the worst hangover ever in existence," she said, "you would have noticed that you are still fully clothed, and so am I. We didn't have sex, Fiyero. Calm down."

He tried to remember what had happened last night. He remembered finding Avaric and some other boys and drinking together, laughing and joking all the while; and then Pfannee, Shenshen, Milla, and some other girls had joined them, Cedence among them. The boys had started kissing and feeling up the girls, most of them quickly disappearing to take the girls with them to their dorm rooms. Fiyero remembered talking to Cedence. If he remembered correctly, he had even burst out crying at some point, snivelling into Cedence's shoulder. He felt embarrassed, but at least he hadn't done anything horrible.

He breathed a long sigh of relief. "Oh, thank Oz."

"Not that I didn't want to," Cedence added. "We talked a lot at first, and we kissed –"

"We _kissed_?!" Fiyero gripped his hair. "Oz dammit…" He remembered, now, too. It had only been one kiss, but it had been a passionate one, if he remembered correctly.

"We didn't do anything else." Cedence shrugged. "You started crying, but you weren't really coherent, so I had no idea what that was all about. And then you started kissing me, so I kissed you back. After that, it seemed like you wanted more from me, but you were so drunk you could barely stand up straight and so I tried to take you home, only all of your friends had already left and I had no idea where your dorm room was, so I just brought you here. It was really awkward, by the way," she added. "You constantly tried to get me out of my dress or feel me up, but every time you stopped and started blubbering about how you couldn't do this to Elphaba and you really should stop. So we stopped, but then you started again, until you finally collapsed on my bed and started snoring."

Fiyero, by now, had buried his face in a pillow, moaning. "Oh my Oz, Cedence, I'm so sorry… I feel like the biggest idiot alive."

"It's okay," she told him. "But honestly, Fiyero? Given the way you kept talking about this Elphaba, and your behaviour… I don't understand what you were doing with me in the first place. It sounded like you really love her."

"I do," came his muffled voice from the pillow. "But she broke up with me yesterday."

"Ah." Cedence chewed her lip. "That explains a lot."

He sighed and raised his head. "But we're not really broken up," he tried to explain. "I mean… I think she was just angry with me. I hope that was it… but I never meant to hurt her. I just wanted to have some fun for one night, I was going to talk to her again in the morning…"

"Is she the green girl you're always with?" Cedence asked him and he nodded.

"Yes."

Cedence nodded, too. "Well, I won't claim to know her, or anything like that… but she seems reasonable enough. If you were to go to her and talk it all out, I'm sure you'll be fine." She stretched in a very cat-like manner. "Would you get out of my bed now? I tried to sleep on the couch, but that didn't work out too well, so I'd like to take a nap if you don't mind."

"Oh. Right. Of course." Fiyero grinned sheepishly and rolled out of bed, combing his hair with his fingers. Cedence stretched out on the bed and he looked at her. "Thanks. You know, for letting me sleep here, and for your advice."

"You're welcome," she said. "I hope you and Elphaba will make up."

Fiyero smiled and leant down to kiss her cheek. "Bye." With that, he left.

He did not even take the time to freshen up or change. Instead, he went straight to the cafeteria, hoping he'd find Elphaba there; but he only found Boq, who told him that Elphaba and Nessarose were having breakfast at the Primrose Café.

And so that was his next stop.

He discovered Elphaba and Nessa in a corner and he approached them, smiling at Nessa. "Hello, Nessa. Can I borrow Elphaba for a moment?"

Nessa smiled back at him. "Sure. I had just finished eating, anyway." She wheeled herself out of the way so that Fiyero could sit down. "I'll see you later, Fabala," she said to her sister before leaving.

Fiyero sat down opposite the green girl, who was attacking her scrambled eggs with her fork.

"What do you want?" she asked gruffly when he did not speak.

He sighed. "Fae… I just want to make up."

"There's nothing to make up, because we're not fighting." She stabbed another piece of egg. "We just broke up."

"No, we did not." He reached across the table and took her hand, stopping her angry movements.

"Elphaba," he said. "I love you. Only you. And yes, I've neglected you, and I haven't treated you with the respect you deserve… and I'm sorry. I really am. Please, just… give me the chance to try again."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I heard you were having fun at the OzDust with Cedence last night," she spat. "I hope you enjoyed yourself."

He winced. "Fae… nothing happened."

"She took you to her dorm room," Elphaba accused.

He nodded. "She did, because I was too drunk to go home by myself. She said I rambled about you all night long."

Now she seemed uncertain. "Really?"

"Really." He lowered his eyes. "I'm really sorry, Elphaba. I just… don't want to lose you."

She seemed to soften at that. "Yero…"

"I'll be the perfect boyfriend," he promised her. "I'll do anything for you. Just give me another chance. Please."

She hesitated. Then she took a deep breath.

"Okay," she said. "One more chance."

A grin spread across his face and he felt like sweeping her off her seat and whirling her around, but somehow, he did not think she would appreciate that; and so he settled for leaning forward and kissing her.

"You won't regret it," he promised. "I'll be the best boyfriend ever in existence."

She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "I'm just glad nothing happened between you and Cedence," she confessed. "I mean… after the way you kept denying that anything was going on between the two of you, and then the fact that she looks so much like Aliyra… I don't know if I could handle that."

He swallowed difficultly. He didn't want to tell her about the kiss… but he couldn't lie to her, either.

"Um…"

She sat up straight. "Something did happen." It was a conclusion, not a question.

He swallowed again and looked down.

"We kissed," he said quietly.

She sucked in her breath with a sharp hiss.

"I'm so sorry, Fae – I didn't mean for it to happen… but I was so sad and heartbroken after you left, and I got drunk… that's no excuse, I know, but I wasn't being myself. I'm sorry, I regret it more than anything, and it didn't mean anything… it was just once. But we did kiss." He was making pathetic excuses now and he knew it. He also knew that she was never going to forgive him now.

And he was right.

When she reached for her drink and threw it in his face, he was just grateful that she had grabbed her orange juice, rather than the searing hot coffee right next to it.


	22. Summer plans

**AN: Yep. I broke them up. And it's not going to get any better soon... heheh. Thank you all so much for your reviews!**

**I love how you all loved the juice-and-coffee-line, because it was one of my own favourites; and I also love how you all thought Fiyero deserved the coffee, rather than the juice :P.**

* * *

**Chapter 22. Summer plans**

After that, she did not speak to him again.

In class, she always sat beside Galinda, with the wall on her other side. She avoided him constantly and when she couldn't avoid him, she ignored him. It was clear that she was furious with him and he could understand that, he really could. The way he had treated her had been completely wrong and him kissing Cedence was just the final straw. He feared it was really over between them now and that, more than anything else, broke his heart.

When Nessa came to visit Elphaba in her dorm room one day, she found the green girl sitting on her bed with a letter, tears glistening on her cheeks.

"Fabala?" Nessarose asked in concern, wheeling herself closer. "What is it?"

"It's…" Elphaba sniffled. "It's a letter from father." She shook her head, chuckling mirthlessly. Then she threw the letter into Nessa's lap.

"He says that he is not very happy about it; but if Boq will escort us, we are allowed to spend a few weeks of the summer in the Vinkus."

Nessa, knowing that her sister had pleaded with their father to let them go so that she could be with Fiyero for part of the summer, grimaced sympathetically. "Oh."

Elphaba let herself fall back onto her bed. "Well, at least Father will be happy now," she said wryly. "We'll be home all summer long."

"Fabala," Nessa tried, "it could be a lot of fun, you know… you've always wanted to see other parts of Oz. This is your chance. I know you two broke up, but if Boq and Galinda were to come as well… can't we just all go there as friends?"

"Friends?!" Elphaba shook her head. "Never," she declared. "It's over, Nessa. If it were up to me, I wouldn't see him ever again. Unfortunately I can't help it, since he also goes to school here; but I'm not going to deliberately spend time with him. I'm not going."

"But what if _I _want to go?" said Nessa.

Elphaba shrugged. "Then go with Boq."

"Father wouldn't allow me to go alone with him."

"Nessa…" Elphaba sighed wearily. "Please. I'll do fun things with you this summer, I promise. I'll take you anywhere you'd like… as long as it's not anywhere near Fiyero."

Nessarose nodded, neatly folding the letter and placing it on Elphaba's bed. "I see."

"Was there anything in particular you came to talk to me about?" asked Elphaba, changing the subject.

Nessa shook her head. "Not really," she said. "I just wanted to chat a little."

"Shall we go for a walk?" her sister suggested. "It's a beautiful day."

Nessa agreed and they left together, walking down a path that would lead them around campus and past Suicide Canal for a bit. Nessa chattered on about Boq and how perfect he was, and how wonderful everything was going with their relationship. Elphaba tried to listen, but she just couldn't concentrate on Nessa's story; and when she caught sight of Fiyero sitting underneath a tree with Cedence, she didn't hear a word her sister said anymore. She pressed her lips together and looked away, boring her nails into the palm of her hand.

"Fabala?" Nessa said quietly. "Fiyero is coming this way."

Elphaba glanced up for a moment and when she saw that Fiyero was on his feet, she turned Nessa's chair and went in the opposite direction, walking a bit faster. She didn't look back. Nessa did and she saw the way Fiyero's shoulders slumped as he flopped back into the grass, looking miserable.

"I think he really regrets it, Elphaba," the youngest Thropp said.

Elphaba shook her head. "I don't care."

"Yes, you do," Nessa argued. "I know you still care about him, Fabala. You love him –"

"No, I don't," Elphaba bit at her sister. "Now would you please stop talking about Fiyero?"

"Fair enough," said Nessa primly, folding her hands in her lap. "But I think you're making a mistake."

Galinda said the same thing when she and Elphaba were alone in their shared dorm room that night.

"Elphie," she tried to reason with her friend, "he was sad because you broke up with him. He drank too much and he did some things he regrets now. It's not a big deal. He didn't have sex with anyone, he didn't murder anyone or beat anyone to pulp. He just kissed a girl. That's all."

"I could forgive him for that kiss, Glin," Elphaba said softly. "If it had only been that kiss. But it wasn't. It was everything. It was him struggling with Aliyra's death, him pining after Cedence because she looked like Aliyra… it was mostly just," she choked back a sob, determined not to cry over him, "just knowing that he would always love Aliyra more than he loves me, you know? He loved her so much, Glin, I could tell, and… and I'm not like that. I'm not that girl for him and I never was. _She _was. And maybe now Cedence will be."

"Oh, Elphie…" Galinda shook her head sadly. "Don't you see? He doesn't want Cedence, sweetie. He wants _you_."

"No, he doesn't," Elphaba said, crawling under the blankets. "He's better off without me, anyway." She distinguished the light on her nightstand. "Goodnight, Galinda."

"Goodnight, Elphie." Galinda sighed as she lay back, staring at the ceiling and wondering if there was anything she could do to help her friend.

* * *

The day before summer vacation would start, Cedence came to talk to Elphaba.

The green girl was just walking across campus after helping Nessa pack, intending to finish packing herself before their carriage would leave in a few hours, when the girl caught up with her.

"Elphaba?"

The dark-haired witch looked to the side and frowned. "Cedence."

The redhead flashed her a smile. "Hey. I was just wondering… can I talk to you for a clock-tick?"

Elphaba was utterly confused, but she tried not to let it show. "Um… sure?"

They sat down on a bench, Elphaba still completely bewildered. Why in Oz would Cedence, of all people, want to talk to her? Cedence was part of the popular crowd, after all; and aside from Fiyero and Galinda, none of them ever lowered themselves to the level of their less popular classmates… much less risked their reputation by being seen talking to the Artichoke.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" asked Elphaba.

Cedence shifted a little. "It's about Fiyero."

Immediately, Elphaba's eyes narrowed and she scowled, realising why Cedence was here. "Did he send you to talk to me? Really?"

"No!" the other girl protested. "No, he has nothing to do with this… he doesn't even know I'm talking to you. I promise."

Elphaba relaxed a little. "Then why?"

"Listen," Cedence said seriously. "I don't know exactly what's going on between you and Fiyero, and I don't need to know, either – it's none of my business."

Elphaba tilted her head a little to the side, intrigued despite herself.

"But I suspect it has something to do with him spending time with me," Cedence continued. "At least partly."

Elphaba did not deny that.

"And I just wanted to tell you that you have nothing to fear from me," the redhead told her. "I mean… Fiyero is nice enough, but there's nothing going on between us. There never has been. The fact that he kissed me the night of the ball was mostly just both him and me being kind of drunk, but it didn't mean anything to either of us. In fact, I have a boyfriend of my own – a sophomore." She shook her head. "Not that that matters, but… well… I can understand why you may have thought that something else was going on between us, and I just wanted to tell you that that's not the case. It never has been, it's not now, and it never will be. Just to make that clear."

Elphaba nodded slowly. "Okay."

Cedence rose to her feet again. "Well… okay, then. That was all, really." She smiled at Elphaba. "I hope you two will be okay," she said. "I think you're really cute together."

She left and Elphaba stayed on that bench for a while longer, lost in thought.

* * *

_Dear Fiyero,_

_I just wanted to send you a quick message to ask you if our holiday at Adurin Iir is still on, and if Galinda will be able to make it as well? Boq would gladly accompany Fabala and me to the Vinkus. I am already looking forward to seeing it!_

_Poor Father is horribly confused – first Elphaba pleaded with him to let her go to the Vinkus in the summer, and now she flat-out refuses to go. I have tried to reason with her, but she just won't listen. I told Father a little about what is going on and about our plan, and he says that he is fine with me going as long as both Boq and Elphaba will be with me. Since there seems to be no way to talk Elphaba into coming, I suppose I will have to take more drastic measures._

_Don't worry – we'll come. All of us._

_I shall see you in a few weeks._

_Sincerely,_

_Nessarose Thropp_

* * *

_Dear Nessa,_

_Thank you for your letter! I'm glad to hear that all three of you are coming, though admittedly I am a little worried to hear that Elphaba does not want to come and you are resorting to 'drastic measures'… however, if your 'drastic measures' mean that Fae gets to come to the Vinkus, then I won't question your methods. My parents would love to have you all here and I would, too, of course. You can stay here for two weeks in July. I tried to bargain for more, but there are some royal duties getting in the way, unfortunately._

_Galinda was absolutely delighted at both the invitation and the plan. 'Operation Fiyeraba', she calls it. Honestly, I am not very hopeful about us getting back together. I've never seen Fae so angry and so cold at the same time. It's like she doesn't even care anymore. She doesn't cry, she doesn't even seem sad… I think she's over me already. I hope I'm wrong, but frankly, I don't think she loves me anymore._

_Enough with the sad thoughts, though – we'll see when you all get here. Until then!_

_Fiyero_

* * *

"Father," Nessarose announced one day during dinner, "do you remember that invitation I told you about? The one Fiyero Tiggular sent me?" She did not miss the way her sister tensed at his name.

"Yes, I remember," said Frexspar. "What about it?"

"Well," Nessa said, playing her part, "you said I could go if Boq and Fabala would escort me, and I asked Boq. He'd love to join us. Galinda is coming, too, so we'll all be in the Vinkus together for a few weeks in the summer. Can we go?"

Elphaba put down her knife and fork with a rather loud clinging sound. "No."

"But Fabala," Nessa said, making wide eyes at her sister and pouting. "I really, _really _want to go and see the Vinkus, and spend some time with our friends in the summer… it will be lovely. And if you won't go, then I can't go, either. Please?"

Elphaba shook her head violently. "Nessa, I am not going within a five-mile radius of that cheating piece of –"

"Elphaba," Frexspar said sharply. "That is enough."

The raven-haired girl closed her mouth and looked down at her plate.

"You will accompany Nessarose," Frex said.

Her head shot up again. "What? No! Father, you can't make me!"

"Elphaba, please," Nessa said, her lower lip trembling. "For me? Please?"

Elphaba looked at her younger sister, clearly torn. "Nessa…" she said pleadingly.

Nessarose gave the green girl her very best impression of a beaten puppy and Elphaba caved.

"Alright," she conceded with a grimace and a heavy sigh. "But I am not going anywhere near him, Nessa, and you can't make me."

"Fair enough," Nessa said, smiling brightly. "Thank you, Fabala."

Elphaba grumbled something under her breath, absolutely sure that she was going to regret this.

* * *

**Operation Fiyeraba has begun!**

******Also, I started posting my new fic _Days of summer_ and I would love for you to check it out :).**


	23. Hurt

**AN: The bad news is that this chapter is probably the worst one of this entire story. The good news is that that means it can only get better from the next chapter onward. Right? Right.**

**I agree with you all that it was kind of mean of Nessa, but I figured she's still Nessa and she mostly just thinks about what she wants and not how it can make someone else feel.**

**Kudos to Elphaba'sGirl for the _Wonderwomen _reference ^^.**

**I love the whole #OperationFiyeraba thing on Twitter. It's genius :P.**

**Chapter dedicated to Woodland59 for being the 400th (!) reviewer! :D Virtual Portugese dessert of your choice for you!**

* * *

**Chapter 23. Hurt**

When Nessarose and Fiyero had come up with their plan, they had thought it to be perfect. It was so easy: Nessa would get Elphaba to come to the Vinkus, where Fiyero would have two entire weeks to win her back.

What he hadn't taken into account, however, was Elphaba's talent for avoiding him.

She disappeared constantly. Fiyero took all of his friends out of the castle sometimes, to show them the gardens, or the villages nearby, or the Thousand Year Grasslands; and though she seemed to love it all, she didn't spare him as much as a glance. He never got to speak to her alone and even in public, she would not say a single word to him.

His parents liked her – and the others, too – very much and the feeling seemed to be reciprocal, which he was happy about, but not as happy as he once would have been. If Elphaba really didn't want him back, it wouldn't really matter if she liked his parents or if they liked her, after all.

He managed to corner her one day, five days after she had first arrived. She was exploring the library – as she had spent most of her free time doing – and he came to look for her, finding her between the shelves.

"Hey, Fae," he said.

She glanced up briefly before returning her attention to her book, not replying.

He sighed. "Fae… come on. I know I messed up, but you can just talk to me, can't you? If you really can't get back together with me, can't we at least be friends?"

She pressed her lips together and said nothing.

He leant against a bookshelf. "So you really hate me that much."

"I don't hate you," she said wearily. "I just don't feel like talking to you right now."

He looked at her. "I'm really sorry."

"I know you are, Fiyero. That's not the point." She put the book back and turned to face him. "It's like I told you before – you're just not supposed to be with me."

"And who are you to tell me that?" he demanded.

"The one you've been pushing aside in favour of Aliyra for the past months," she snapped.

He recoiled, as if she had slapped him – which, frankly, was how he felt. He knew he had made mistakes. He knew he had done things that had made her feel like he still loved Aliyra more than he did Elphaba. He had done many things wrong with her, but now she was crossing a line.

"That," he said in a low voice, "is not fair, Elphaba."

"It's how you made me feel!" she shouted at him. "Looking back now, I can't even remember a single thing about our relationship that was not in some way connected to Aliyra! Did you even love me at all, or did I just remind you of her, too? You told me I am like Aliyra when it comes to personality – was that the reason you got together with me in the first place?"

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, lost for words. He wanted to reassure her that it wasn't, that he really loved her for her… but how could he, when her question had been something he had so often asked himself in the beginning?

He knew now that yes, he really did love Elphaba for who she was, and that had nothing to do with Aliyra; but he hadn't known that in the beginning. He hadn't been sure himself. He could lie to her now, but he knew she would see through him – she always did.

And so he didn't say anything, which confirmed Elphaba's suspicions… but even though she had thought about it countless times already, even though she had suspected it, it still hurt more than she could say.

She pushed past him and fled the library, running up to her room and hiding away there for the next few hours. She didn't want to cry, but she couldn't help it. Had any of it been real at all? Had he ever really loved her for her? Or had it just been everything about her that had reminded him of Aliyra? She had hoped that he would deny it, tell her that she was completely wrong in thinking that, that he really did love her for who _she _was and that it had nothing to do with his deceased fiancée… but he had just stood there without saying anything, thus telling her all she needed to know.

She buried her face in her pillow, sobbing.

Around her friends, she tried to keep her cool. She pretended to be angry, but not upset; she always made sure that no-one saw her tears – not Galinda, not Nessa, and especially not Fiyero. But just because she was hiding it well, didn't mean she wasn't sad. She was heartbroken, but what could she do? He didn't want her. He didn't love her. No-one loved her. She remembered what she had told Fiyero one day early in their relationship and she realised that that was still true: no-one had ever really loved her, and no-one ever would.

* * *

"Nessa?"

The wheelchair-bound girl looked up from where she was talking to Boq and smiled at Galinda. "Hi, Galinda."

The blonde joined the other two, perching on the edge of a couch. "I just wanted to discuss with you two how Operation Fiyeraba is going."

Boq chuckled at the name, but Nessa's face fell.

"Not well," she said with a sigh. "Not well at all. She's still avoiding him. He is annoyed that she ignores him, rather than talks to him; she insists there's nothing left to say. He tries to talk to her, she pushes him away. I think she's being incredibly childish, not to mention selfish, but of course she doesn't listen to me."

"She's hurt, too, Nessa," Galinda said softly. "They both fought and they both said and did things that hurt the other. It's not just Elphie's fault."

"And now Fiyero's angry, too," Boq chimed in. "I talked to him only this morning. Apparently his parents went to talk to Elphaba to explain to her everything they knew about Aliyra and Fiyero's relationship with her." Initially, none of them had known about Aliyra, except for Elphaba; but then Fiyero had told Galinda the day of the ball, after Elphaba had broken up with him, and she had told the others. None of them had heard the entire story from Fiyero, but the short version they knew, combined with the things they had heard Elphaba and Fiyero yell at one another, had told them enough.

"They did?" Galinda asked in surprise. "That's sweet of them… maybe if Elphie understands it better, she'll come around."

"Only his parents agreed with Elphaba that he is probably not over Aliyra yet, and not ready for a new relationship," said Boq drily, "and though they definitely approve of him having her as his girlfriend, they told her they can fully understand why she broke up with him."

"So Fiyero is furious with his parents for choosing Elphaba's side," Nessa concluded.

Boq nodded. "Pretty much. And then he got mad at Elphaba again because he thought she had done something to manipulate his parents into saying that, which kind of shocked her, I think. I can't blame her. She would never do such a thing and we all know that. If Elphaba is anything, it's honest."

"Sometimes a little too honest," Nessa muttered.

"She must be upset," Galinda said softly. "That explains why she's hiding away in her room again."

Nessa moaned and buried her face in her hands. "What are we going to do?" she asked in exasperation. "He is mad at her, she is mad at him. I think they both still love one another, but what if they're right in breaking up, Galinda? What if they're just too different? Sometimes love isn't enough to make a relationship work."

"Of course it is!" Galinda waved a hand in the air. "We can't give up yet! Elphie and Fiyero need us, and we're not going to stop trying until they are back together!" She rose to her feet. "I'm going to talk to Elphie right now!"

She found the green girl in her room, curled up in the window sill. When she heard the blonde enter, she wiped at her eyes and forced a smile, but Galinda could see that she had been crying.

"Elphie…" she said softly, sitting down beside the green girl.

Elphaba sniffled. "He called me a liar," she said, trying to pretend that didn't bother her, but her voice was shaking a little. "He accused me of lying to his parents in order to gain their sympathy and get them on my side. I asked him why in Oz I would do that, and he said it would be to get back at him." She shook her head. "How can he think that of me? I would never do that, Glin. Never. If I wanted to get back at him, I'd do it directly and not through his parents… not even I would stoop so low. But he thinks I would, and then I got mad and…" She shrugged.

Galinda kept quiet, wanting to let Elphaba talk.

"I said some horrible, horrible things to him," the young witch confessed quietly, "and then my magic got out of control and I threw him back against a wall, and he… he started screaming at me that I'm a witch and that he didn't understand how he had ever loved me, and then I screamed back at him that he never did, that he'd been lying to me all along and that Aliyra had been the only one he'd ever loved, and he told me to keep Aliyra out of this and that I shouldn't blame other people for lying when I've been lying to his parents myself… he just didn't believe me when I said I didn't do that. He called me a lying, insensitive witch, and I called him a cheating, good-for-nothing jerk… and then he stormed off and so did I."

She looked out of the window again, apparently not even realising that there were tears in her eyes or Galinda was sure she would have wiped them away. "It's really over, Glin. I knew it was, of course I knew… I'm the one who broke up with him. And maybe it was not fair of me, to judge that kiss so harshly, but it wasn't just that kiss – it was everything before that as well. It's just… I didn't want to hope, but secretly I did hope that maybe, after some time, he'd be more at peace with Aliyra's death… and maybe we could even get back together, eventually. Or at least be friends again. I never meant to lose him forever, Glin."

She realised her tears were falling now and she wiped them away with her sleeve, but they just kept coming.

"And I know it's stupid," she said in a trembling voice. "But I was scared. I kept feeling like something was wrong with our relationship… or maybe I was just fearing it, because to me it still doesn't make sense, him and me together. I was scared of him leaving me, but also of him staying with me. I was afraid I would fail at being a girlfriend the way I always have at being everything else, and that I would lose him. And then that whole thing with Aliyra came up and it gave me an excuse to break it off… only I didn't really feel relieved, just empty, and I didn't know what to do… I still don't." She looked at Galinda, her cheeks wet with tears. "I miss him. So much. But I didn't know how to deal with everything. I love him, but he hurt me so badly, and I hurt him… and I don't deserve him, Glin. I know he was willing to forgive me for everything I said and did, but he shouldn't have been. I don't deserve forgiveness. And I just kept on driving him away, further and further away… I don't know why. Maybe to test how far I could go before he'd stop loving me. And it seems that now, he finally has."

"Of course he hasn't," Galinda said softly, wrapping her arms around her best friend. "Oh, Elphie… it doesn't work like that. You've caused one another so much pain, but don't you see? The people you love have the power to hurt you the most." She looked at Elphaba. "You didn't hurt Fiyero any more than he hurt you," she said. "Did you stop loving him because of it?"

Elphaba shook her head wordlessly, tears still streaming down her face.

"Exactly," Galinda said. "So why would he?"

The green girl lowered her eyes.

Galinda hugged her again. "You need to stop thinking of yourself as a failure, Elphaba Thropp. You are amazing, do you know that? You're the perfect daughter, the best sister a girl could ever wish for, and you're the bestest friend in the entire world. You're a wonderful student and you were a fantastic girlfriend, too. It's your own insecurities that keep holding you back. Stop worrying. And if you do worry, then _talk _about it. You have no trouble telling me that you think I should clean my half of the room and buy less pink clothes, so why is it so difficult for you to tell Fiyero what you think about your relationship? I never thought you, of all people, would have such a big problem with words."

Elphaba said nothing, fidgeting with the hem of her dress.

"Talk to him, Elphie." Galinda took a handkerchief and used it to wipe Elphaba's tears away. "You're not damaged beyond repair. You can still fix this – both of you. You can be together again. You can be happy. Just talk to him."

"I told you, Glin," Elphaba whispered. "He doesn't want me back. Not anymore. He said he couldn't understand how he ever loved me…"

"He was angry," Galinda said logically. "People say things they don't mean when they're angry. And it's a terrible thing to say, and I'll slap him for it, that I promise; but you shouldn't take it too seriously, Elphie. You said things you didn't mean, too."

She hugged her friend once more. "I'll talk to him," she promised, "and I'll make sure you two will get your happy ending, Elphie; because if anyone deserves it, it's you. I love you. You're the bestest friend ever."

"I love you, too, Glin," Elphaba replied quietly, returning the hug.

Galinda let go of her and looked into her eyes.

"We'll fix this," she said. "I promise."

Elphaba hoped she was right.


	24. Mourning losses

**AN: I'm home again! It's good to be back - I missed Brownie - but I already miss the sun and the pretty cities... but, well, much to look forward to this week - Sister Act on Thursday and I'll be going to London for four days on Sunday!**

**This chapter is not very happy, either, but it gets better from next chapter onwards... and I solemnly promise you all that Galinda _will _slap Fiyero.**

* * *

**Chapter 24. Mourning losses**

Fiyero refused to listen to Galinda, however.

"If Elphaba has to say something," he said, "she's going to have to come here and say it herself. I'm done with all this, Glin. Maybe she was right and our relationship was just all wrong." He shook his head. "It's gotten so complicated. All we ever do these days is fight. And I know I was mean to her, but she's been mean to me, too. I've been trying to win her back for months, but she just doesn't want to. It's over."

"It's not over!" Galinda insisted desperately. "Fiyero, she still loves you!"

He smiled a bit sadly at her. "Glin, I love the fact that you're always so romantic and see the best in every person and every situation, but you need to open your eyes and really look at this, at us, objectively. She doesn't love me anymore. We're not going to get back together. I've accepted that now, and I'm just going to try and move on, rather than linger in a past that can no longer be real."

Elphaba, in turn, refused to talk to Fiyero.

When Galinda told her what the prince had said, she shrugged.

"He's right," she said. "And I guess I was, too. There's just no happy ending for us, Galinda. Not every relationship works out. He's not ready for this and I guess I'm not, either. Maybe we were just not meant to be."

"Of course you are!" Galinda tried to make her friend see reason. "Elphie, if you'd just go and _talk _to him –"

"We'd only end up fighting again," said Elphaba softly. "I don't want that. I can only take so much, Galinda. I don't want to stand there and scream obscenities at him again as he yells all kinds of horrible things at me that will keep haunting me for weeks because I wonder if they're true."

"Oh, Elphie, they're not true!" Galinda shook her head. "You shouldn't think like that!"

"Why not?" Elphaba said bitterly. "I already know I'm a failure and an abomination. Father has told me that often enough. So maybe Fiyero is right, too, and I can add 'liar' and 'witch' and a dozen other things to the list as well."

"No!" Galinda tried to hug her friend, but the green girl turned away from her.

"It's just easier this way, Glin," she said quietly. "I ignore him, he ignores me. At least that way neither of us will get hurt again."

"But by ignoring one another, you _are _getting hurt and so is he! Can't you see that? You belong together, Elphie!"

Elphaba didn't say anything else and Galinda gave up, feeling powerless. She had no idea what else she could do to help her friends.

After two weeks, Elphaba, Nessarose, and Boq left back for Munchkinland, and Galinda returned to Gillikin. Fiyero watched them go with a mix of relief and regret. At least if she wasn't around anymore, there would be no more fights… but at the same time it meant that _she wasn't around anymore_, and despite everything, he hated that.

His mother came to talk to him a few days later.

"You should not have blamed her for the fact that your father and I agree with her, Fiyero," Queen Lori said softly. "She hasn't done anything. We simply think that she is right. You loved Aliyra very much, sweetie, I know that, and I don't think you gave yourself the time to grieve. You've spent so long trying not to feel and pushing everything away, but that's not healthy."

"There are a lot of things I shouldn't have done or said to her," he muttered. "And there are a lot of things she shouldn't have done or said to me." He sighed unhappily. "I miss her."

Lori smiled sympathetically. "You love her, Fiyero. I understand, and I'm so proud of you for that." She squeezed his hand. "But sometimes just love is not enough. You need to be at peace with yourself in order to ever be able to happy with her, Yero. Talk about what's bothering you. Allow yourself to cry over Aliyra, or mourn her in any other way that feels good to you."

He shook his head. "I can't."

"Yes, you can. And you should. If not for yourself, then for them – both Aliyra and Elphaba."

He bit his lip. "Mum…"

"I don't think it's too late yet," said Lori. "She can forgive you, but you have to forgive yourself first… and her as well. Yero, if you don't get over yourself and deal with this in a mature way, you're going to lose her forever."

"But…" He stared down. "Mum, I can't talk about Aliyra," he said quietly. "I can't."

"If you can't talk about her," Lori said with a smile as she rose to her feet and moved over to the desk to get a small notebook and a pencil, which she held out to him, "then write."

He stared at the things in her hands.

"Consider it a diary," she said. "Just write about her. The good memories and the bad ones. The things you love and miss most about her. All your regrets, your hopes, your thoughts and feelings. Everything."

He took the notebook from her hesitantly, staring down at it.

"I'm going to join your father in the meeting with his advisors," she said. She kissed the top of his head. "Good luck."

Fiyero chewed the back of his pencil as he thought about his mother's idea, mulling it over in his head. Finally, he made a decision.

He opened the notebook and started writing.

* * *

They left back for Shiz after the summer. Classes started again and Elphaba seemed a little more settled now that she had something to distract her from Fiyero. She threw herself into her studies, trying her hardest and working on her courses every single free minute she had, keeping herself busy.

Fiyero was doing quite the opposite, resorting to parties and alcohol and not doing anything about his studies. He failed every essay and test he had in those first weeks, but he didn't seem to care. When he wasn't drunk, hungover, or nowhere to be found, he was moody and cranky, snapping at everyone who tried to come near him.

Sometimes he would notice Elphaba glancing at him from across the courtyard or the cafeteria, this look in her eyes that he couldn't decipher. If he caught her doing that, he always snatched the nearest pretty girl towards him and kissed her full on the mouth, making sure Elphaba would see. She didn't love him anymore, anyway, so why should he care about what she thought? She refused to even acknowledge his presence these days. Well, he'd show her what she was missing out on.

She always looked away, sometimes leaving the room. A part of him was glad he got a reaction out of her – did that mean she still cared? – but another part of him felt horrible every time he saw it. He wasn't really sure why. Wasn't that what he wanted? To hurt her? She'd hurt him, too, after all. He had every right to hurt her in return.

Galinda came to talk to him a few more times, but he didn't listen to her; nor did he listen to Boq or Nessarose. Even the latter had tried to reason with him, but he had bluntly told her to go away and leave him alone. He was miserable. He was always surrounded by Avaric and his other partying friends, not to mention all the pretty girls he hung out with day and night, but he still felt alone.

He realised he was fooling himself. Of course he didn't want to hurt Elphaba. No matter how hard he tried to deny it, he still loved her. He was just trying to make this all easier on himself, because he knew she didn't love him back. Not anymore. He felt ashamed of himself, because she didn't deserve him hurting her even more. Hadn't he hurt her enough already?

He wished there was a way to fix everything, but he just didn't know how.

The funny thing, he thought wryly as he sat on his bed and stared at the picture on the mantelpiece across from him, was that ever since Elphaba had broken up with him, he had barely thought about Aliyra anymore. The thing that had basically started this all had now almost completely disappeared from his mind. He could only focus on Elphaba and how to get her back at first; and after that, he went over their fights over and over again in his head… but Aliyra had disappeared to the background. He didn't even dream about her anymore. Instead, he dreamt of Elphaba, of songs and music lessons, massages and fights, kisses, dances, and yelling.

He hadn't written in his notebook anymore since he had come back to Shiz. He wasn't sure why. Maybe because drinking and partying was so much easier than writing down his thoughts and feeling, having to face them all over again.

One evening, though, after a particularly miserable day – which had started with a horrible hangover and ended with Galinda getting mad at him for 'destroying not only your last remaining brain cells with this behaviour, but also your chances with Elphie!' – he pulled out the notebook and without really thinking about it, he started writing.

He wrote the story of him and Aliyra as kids, the way they had played together and made up games. He wrote of how they fell in love and of their relationship, of her illness and the way he had lost her.

He then wrote down everything he had felt after her death – the helplessness, the grief, the frustration. He described the way his father threw himself into his work and his mother's attempts to help Fiyero get through it, and his response to that of pushing her and everyone – and everything – else away. He wrote of the way he tried to 'deal' with everything by partying and having fun with other girls, right up until he had met Elphaba and she had changed his life for good. He described her and their relationship, too – first as friends, later as more than just that – and he took his mother's advice to heart, writing down everything he regretted and should have done differently with the green girl.

By the time he was done, the notebook was nearly full and it was three in the morning. The room around him was completely dark, save for the single candle burning on the desk beside him. He stared at it for a few moments before slowly closing the notebook and putting his pencil down. He rose to his feet and stood in front of the window for a long time, gazing out of it without really seeing anything before closing the curtains, blowing out the candle, and going to bed.

* * *

When Galinda passed by one of the classroom buildings of Shiz University one day, she frowned slightly, slowing down. Did she hear music? Where was that coming from?

She approached the window ahead of her, the music growing louder. It was a piano. And then someone started singing.

"_I always needed time on my own_

_I never thought I'd need you there when I cry_

_And the days feel like years when I'm alone…_"

Galinda frowned. She knew that voice… didn't she? She crept closer to the window, peering through it. What she saw made her gasp.

"_Do you see how much I need you right now?_

_When you're gone the pieces of my heart are missing you…_"

The blonde could only stare into the room with her eyes and mouth wide open. She realised she shouldn't be so surprised. Elphaba had told her that Fiyero had given her piano lessons, after all, and that she had sung for him… this must be the music room Elphie had told her about.

"_When you're gone the words I need to hear to always get me through the day_

_And make it okay_

_I miss you._"

"I knew it!" Galinda yelled, pointing one finger through the open window at her roommate. "You still love him!"

Elphaba, who had nearly gotten a heart attack at the sudden screeching of the blonde, put a hand over her heart, looking pale. "Sweet Oz, Galinda! How long have you been standing there?" she demanded in a high voice.

Galinda waved her hand at the green girl. "You should tell him, Elphie."

Elphaba shook her head. "Never."

"But he's miserable without you!"

"He's miserable without Aliyra," Elphaba corrected her. "He doesn't want me anymore."

Galinda pouted. "But _Elphie_!"

"No, Galinda."

The blonde thought quickly. If only there was a way for her to make Elphie see that Fiyero still loved her… or to make Fiyero see that Elphie still loved him.

Then she came up with an idea.

"Do you do this often, Elphie? " she asked softly. "Coming here to play and clear your mind, I mean?"

Elphaba shrugged. "Sometimes," she admitted. "It helps, I think… a little."

Galinda smiled. "That's good."

"Yeah." Elphaba rose to her feet and grabbed her bag.

"You don't have to stop because of me!" Galinda protested, but her roommate shook her head.

"I was going to stop soon, anyway," she said. "I'm tired."

Not for the first time, Galinda noted the dark circles under her friend's eyes. She had gotten thinner, too, over the past months. The blonde sighed and shook her head. "Elphie, shall we go and get some dinner together?"

"No, thanks," said the green girl. "I'm not hungry."

"You hardly ever eat anything anymore, Elphie."

"I just don't have much of an appetite, that's all." She swung her bag over her shoulder and looked at the blonde. "I think I'll just go to sleep early. You go. Maybe Nessa and Boq will want to join you," she suggested.

Galinda made a face. "Yes, because I _so _enjoy watching them suck one another's faces off," she muttered.

Elphaba laughed. "They're not that bad."

"They're not," Galinda agreed, "but they are pretty mushy, always holding one another's hand, and kissing… I'll just go and ask Shenshen, Pfannee and Milla instead, thank you very much." She looked at her friend worriedly. "Are you sure you don't want anything?"

Elphaba shook her head. "I'm fine."

"Okay. If you say so." Galinda bade her friend goodbye and left, pondering things over in her head. She smiled slightly at the thought of what she was going to do.

Galinda Upland had a plan.

* * *

**The song is _When You're Gone _by Avril Lavigne.**

**I'm going to try and finish posting both _Dances with princes _and _Days of summer _before I leave for London on Sunday, because I won't be taking my laptop with me, which means a four-day hiatus, and I hate putting things on hiatus... not sure if I'll make it, though. We'll see.**


	25. A song of pain

**AN: Thank you so much for the reviews! I'm not really having a great night - not sure why, just not really feeling well, both physically and emotionally... and I decided some reviews would help, so I posted this chapter. The Chapter That Will Be The First Step To Reuniting Fiyeraba. It won't be long anymore, guys.**

**I laughed at all your comments on Galinda's plan - half of you were like, "Yay, plan! Operation Fiyeraba!" and the other half was like, "Galinda has a plan... oh dear". I must say I personally really like Galinda in this story. Perky and bouncy as ever, yet smarter than she lets on.**

**I also added in another song - I've had this one in mind since I first started writing this fic. Every time I hear it, it reminds me of the situation they're in. It's called _Another Now _by Kate Alexa (some of you might recognise it from the series _H2O: Just Add Water_).**

**I hope you like the Galinda slap. I personally really did!**

* * *

**Chapter 25. A song of pain**

"I'm going out," said Elphaba one afternoon, a few days later. "I won't be very long – I'll be back before dinner."

"Will you have dinner with Nessa and me tonight?" Galinda asked her hopefully.

Elphaba frowned slightly. "Just Nessa? What about Boq?"

Galinda raised one eyebrow and Elphaba cast her eyes heavenward in exasperation. "They did not break up _again_, did they?"

"Sort of," Galinda giggled. "They're horrible. So, are you coming?"

Elphaba hesitated. "I don't know…"

"Elphie," her roommate said pointedly. "You're a walking skeleton. I can count your ribs even through your dress. You look horrible."

"Well, then my appearance apparently reflects what's inside." Elphaba made to walk over to the door.

"Elphie, I'm worried about you," Galinda said. "All you ever do anymore these days is study. You hardly sleep and I almost never see you eat anything. Just come with us tonight – it'll be fun, I promise. Please?"

Elphaba sighed wearily, but gave in. "Fine."

Galinda beamed at her. "Great! We'll meet you at the Primrose Café around seven!" Then she tilted her head slightly to the side. "Where are you going, anyway?"

"The music room," Elphaba replied before slipping out of the room with a "Bye, Glin".

Galinda's eyes lit up. The music room.

Perfect.

She quickly slipped her feet into a pair of heels – she didn't even properly take the time to match them exactly with her dress, that was how hurried she was – and she all but ran down the stairs, out of the building and to the boys' dorm rooms. She skidded to a halt in front of Fiyero's door and knocked a few times.

When he finally opened the door, looking slightly bewildered at her apparent haste, she immediately blurted out, "Fiyero, if you want proof that Elphie still loves you, you have to go to the music room right now."

Fiyero frowned. "What –"

"Just do it!" Galinda shouted at him, stomping her foot. "This has gone on for long enough already and I need you to put an end to it! You aren't studying, Elphie isn't sleeping, both of you are always locking yourselves in your respective rooms alone, and yet you're both too stupid to realise that you can easily fix all that by just _talking to one another_!"

"Galinda –"

"She thinks you don't love her anymore and you think the same thing of her, but it's simply not true! You both still love each other and I'm sick of all this! Just _talk_, for Oz's sake! You look horrible, Fiyero, and Elphie looks even worse. Don't tell me it's okay or that it's better like this, because we both know it's not." She crossed her arms and glared at him. "Now get your royal ass over to that music room or I will kick it there!"

Fiyero ran his fingers through his hair, looking frustrated.

"Fine," he said finally. "I'll go. But I don't know what you expect me to find there, Galinda. Just for the record, I still think you're being delusional when you say that Elphaba still loves me."

"If it turns out that she does, would you try to win her back?" Galinda demanded and he sighed, but nodded.

"Yes. Of course. I love her."

"Great. That's all I need to know." Galinda grabbed his arm and started dragging him over to the door, pushing him ahead of her. "Now go. Oh, no, wait, there's something I have to do first," she remembered, skidding to a halt and stopping to face Fiyero. He blinked at her, clearly confused, and she took a deep breath.

Then she lashed out and slapped him so hard across the face that his head whipped to the side.

His hand flew up to his cheek and he stared at her, shocked.

"That," she said, shaking her slightly hurting hand, "was for calling Elphie a liar and a witch."

His shoulders slumped. "I deserved that."

"You most certainly did." Galinda gave him a push. "Now go."

And he did.

When he reached the music room, he found the door to be slightly open. He peeked inside. Elphaba was sitting at the piano, slowly running her fingers across the keys. He noticed with a pang that Galinda was right – she did not look good at all.

He could hear her heaving a deep sigh even from his spot behind the door. He stayed there and listened as she started to play, carefully pressing the keys; softly at first, but then the sound grew louder and louder, and then she started to sing.

"_It was only just the other day that all this felt so real_

_Like nothing could go wrong_

_It was like a never-ending dream, nothing ever changed_

_For so long_

_But now you've gone away_

_And I've tried turning the page_

_And it's just not the same;_

_But I'm breathing in, and I'm breathing out_

_I'm wide awake but I can't hear a sound_

_Though I'm breathing in, I can't think about_

_Another you, another me_

_Another now._

_Where do I go from here?_

_I've never felt so strange,_

_I've never felt so torn_

'_Cause ever since you came my way_

_I learnt to live by you_

_And now I'm on my own_

_I know I need some time_

_To leave all this behind_

'_Cause I'm still hanging on;_

_But I'm breathing in, and I'm breathing out_

_I'm wide awake but I can't hear a sound_

_Though I'm breathing in, I can't think about_

_Another you, another me_

_Another now._"

Fiyero quietly pushed against the door. It swung open silently, revealing her to him completely. She was sitting with her back towards him, slender green fingers dancing across the keys. As he slowly circled the piano so that he could look at her face, he saw that her eyes were closed as she played.

"_I'm sitting here, all alone_

_Don't wanna move, nowhere to go_

'_Cause nothing's real, I just wanna hide_

'_Cause you're not here_

_But I'm breathing in, and I'm breathing out_

_I'm wide awake but I can't hear a sound_

_I'm breathing in, and I'm breathing out_

_I'm wide awake but I can't hear a sound_

_Though I'm breathing in, I can't think about_

_Another you, another me, another now…_"

As she played, she opened her eyes and looked straight at him. She didn't even seem surprised at his presence; maybe she had felt his eyes on her all along. Or maybe she _was_ surprised, but she just hid it very well.

She played the final chords of the song, her eyes still locked with his.

"_Another you, another me_," she sang, before lowering her gaze, "_another now._"

Both of them remained silent as the final note died away. The only sound breaking the silence in the room was both of them breathing. Elphaba looked up again, removing her fingers from the keys.

"Galinda sent you." She wasn't asking, merely stating a fact.

He nodded. "She did."

She barked a mirthless laugh. "Well, then, now you know how pathetic I am. Despite the fact that I am the one who broke up with you, and despite the fact that you've made it very clear what you think of me and how you feel, I'm still… well, you know." She gestured to the piano. "So now you have another thing to add to the list," she said sarcastically. "Insensitive, heartless, a liar, a witch, and a pathetic idiot. Can you please just leave me alone now?"

He stepped closer to her. "I never said you were heartless."

She huffed.

"And I shouldn't have said any of those other things, either," he said quietly.

She looked at him, not saying anything.

"Was it true?" he asked her. "What you sang just now?"

She remained silent, looking away.

"Fae…" He took another step towards her. "Do you still love me?"

She stared down at the keys of the piano, fidgeting and shifting uncomfortably. He barely caught her quiet mutter when she replied. "Do you even have to ask?"

It felt as if a huge weight suddenly dropped from his shoulders and he felt giddy. "Really?"

"Fiyero, just stop this," she snapped. "I know it's funny. Ha, ha. I'm pathetic. I get it, really. You can stop embarrassing me now." She rose to her feet abruptly. "I'm going to leave. Goodbye, Fiyero."

"No, wait!" He leapt forward and caught her hand in his.

She froze, staring down at their joined hands wide-eyed. It was that day with the Lion Cub all over again, except the roles were reversed now.

"I'm not trying to embarrass you," he tried to tell her, "or make fun of you."

She scowled. "Then why –"

"Because I thought you didn't love me anymore," he blurted out.

She opened her mouth, then closed it again, blinking. He could see the disbelief in her eyes. "Are… are you saying…" She shook her head and pulled her hand away, stepping back. "What _are _you saying, exactly?"

"I'm saying that I'm sorry for hurting you," he said. "So many times. And you were right, back then. I just didn't want to see it." He took a deep breath. "But I see it now, and Mum helped me find a way to deal with it. I…" He raked his fingers through his hair, frustrated. "I know I messed up. I also know not everything was just my fault, but I didn't handle the situation the way I should have. And I'd understand if you can't forgive me for everything I've done."

He suddenly got an idea and reached into his bag, pulling out the notebook he had used as a journal. He gave it to her.

"Will you read this first, before you decide?" he asked her.

She accepted it warily, studying the cover. "What is it?"

"It's everything," he said simply. Before he could lost his courage – or she could pull away – he leant forward and kissed her cheek.

"Come find me when you've read it," he said quietly. "No matter what your answer is, I won't hold it against you… but I really, really want you to forgive me."

She hesitated, then nodded, stacking the notebook away in her bag.

"I'll read it," she promised.

He smiled sadly at her. "Thank you."

She nodded. Then she turned around and left.

* * *

When Galinda sneaked a peek through the window, she found Fiyero sitting at the piano, playing the song he and Elphaba had been working on for so long.

She entered the building and went straight to the music room, perching on a chair in the corner and raising an eyebrow at Fiyero.

He stopped playing, though he did not look up. "Do you realise it's nearly been a year?" he asked her quietly without looking at her. "A year ago next month, I first came to Shiz. Just over nine months ago, I was working on this song with Fae. About eight months ago we first got together." He removed his fingers from the keys and looked up at Galinda.

"Do you realise," he said, "that we've been broken up now about as long as we've been together in the first place?"

Galinda had to admit that no, she had not realised that.

"Four months," he said quietly, his fingers trailing figures on the piano keys. "It's been four months since the End Year's Ball, when she broke up with me." He shook his head. "It seems so long and so short at the same time."

"What did you say to her?" Galinda asked him softly. "Did you hear her sing? Do you think you two will be okay?"

He shrugged and heaved a sigh. "I don't know." He looked at the blonde. "But I tried. And I'll keep doing so for as long as I have to."

She smiled sympathetically and squeezed his arm as she passed him. "I have faith in you," she said. "Both of you."

He managed a weak smile. "Thanks, Glin."

"Anytime." She squeezed his arm again and then left.

* * *

**Kudos to my Guest reviewer and to PocketSevens for guessing what would happen ;).**

**PocketSevens: Oh, no, I'm not going to see anything special in London... except for WICKED. :D Other than that: museums, bookstores, Starbuckses... :P Portugal was great, thanks for asking :) and as for the pie - I believe it can be good. It's not traumatising to _me_. Most of my reviewers, on the other hand... :')**

**Musicgal3: I realised that, too, when I read it back the other day! The fic you mean is _Out of the blue_, I think.  
**


	26. Another now

**AN: Thanks for all the reviews :). Glad you liked the Galinda-slap, hihi.**

**I'm not going to finish posting (and possibly even writing) this before I go to London, so I'm going to have to leave you un-updated for a few days... sorry :(. Probably on _Days of summer_, too. But I'll update again soon after I get back!**

**You'll all like this chapter, I think.**

* * *

**Chapter 26. Another now**

Galinda slammed the door to her dorm room shut behind her, eyes flaring.

"Elphaba Thropp," she said angrily, stalking into the room, "I thought we had agreed to meet at the Primrose Café at seven. I get that you're not hungry, but you have to eat and… Elphie?" she asked, her anger quickly turning into concern when she saw her roommate sitting on her bed with a notebook open in front of her, crying. "What's the matter? Are you okay?"

Elphaba sniffled and wiped her nose with her sleeve. "I'm fine."

"You're not fine." Galinda sat down beside her and peered at the notebook. "What is that?"

"It's…" Elphaba slowly ran her fingers across the cover. "It's something Fiyero gave to me."

She winced at the loud squeal that escaped her best friend. "Oh, Elphie! What's in it? A declaration of love? All the songs he wrote for and about you when you were still together and when you were apart? His diary?" She giggled at her own joke, but her eyes widened when Elphaba looked down. "Oh my Oz. His diary?"

"Sort of," Elphaba admitted. "It's… it's about Aliyra, and about me… he said something about his mother helping him find a way to cope with everything and I think this was it. I think he wrote it all down… and he wanted me to read it."

"Well, what does it say?" Galinda asked, bouncing up and down on the bed excitedly.

Elphaba shook her head. "I can't tell you, Glin," she said apologetically. "You wouldn't want me to tell Fiyero about the things you write in _your _diary, either, if you had let me read it. It's confidential."

"Okay, I can understand that," said Galinda. "But can you at least tell me if it changes anything for _you_?"

That was something Elphaba had been wondering herself. "Well… I understand his relationship with Aliyra a whole lot better now." She caught her lower lip between her teeth, chewing it thoughtfully. "And the way he felt about me… it seems like he's been having a lot of doubts about his own intentions from the beginning. He wasn't sure if he loved me for the right reasons, but… but he _did _love me. And after a while, apparently he realised that…"

She stared down at the notebook again, thinking about everything she'd read. She understood. Everything he had written made sense to her. She only wished she'd have known all this before.

"What if it's too late?" she said softly, fidgeting with the notebook as she looked down.

Galinda understood what she meant immediately and wrapped her arms around her roommate in a hug. "It's never too late, Elphie. He knows now that you still love him, and you know that he still loves you."

"Do I?" Elphaba asked, her voice breaking.

Galinda's heart went out to the green girl. "Oh, Elphie… how can you still doubt that? You just said you've read this – don't tell me it doesn't say how much he loves you. I know he does."

"It does say that," Elphaba admitted quietly. "But…"

"No 'but', Elphie." Galinda shook her head. "Just accept it, because it's true."

Elphaba sighed.

"Come on." Galinda held out a hand. "Let's go have dinner. You can think about it, process it, and then tomorrow you can go talk to him. Okay?"

"Okay," Elphaba agreed, accepting Galinda's hand. She surprised both the blonde and herself by suddenly hugging Galinda. "Thank you."

Galinda smiled and hugged her friend back. "You're welcome."

* * *

The next afternoon found Elphaba sitting underneath a willow tree near Suicide Canal, re-reading Fiyero's journal for the third time.

She just didn't know what to think… or what to do. She loved him. Of course she did. She had never stopped loving him, but she couldn't just go to him and apologise and everything would be alright again… or could she? Was Galinda right and did he still love her, too? She could hardly believe that, but why else would he have given her his journal and asked her to forgive him? Would he have done that if he hated her?

On the other hand, the fact that he didn't hate her didn't mean that he loved her. Maybe he just wanted to go back to being friends. Could she do that? Be nothing more than friends with him?

But then she thought of the months they had spent either apart or fighting, and she knew she could do it, if that was what he really wanted. She would take anything he'd give her. She loved him too much. She just wanted him back in any possible way, and being his friend would be countless times better than not having any contact with him at all.

She was still musing over all that when Fiyero joined her.

He pushed the low branches of the willow tree aside and smiled carefully when he saw her. "Hey."

She looked up from the notebook and quickly wiped her eyes with her sleeves, hoping he hadn't seen the tears in them. "Hey." She scooted over a little to make room for him and he sat down beside her, looking at the notebook.

"So?" he asked, looking like he was already bracing himself for the answer. "What do you think?"

"I think…" She leant her head back against the tree trunk, closing her eyes for a moment. "I think you were right," she said.

She opened her eyes again and looked at him. "Everything you said was true," she said, her voice thick with pent-up tears. "I _was _being an insensitive witch, Fiyero, and I'm so sorry. I just… I didn't understand."

"It wasn't your fault," he said. "I didn't even try to explain it to you. I was a jerk."

"And I was a bitch." She let out a mirthless laugh. "I just… I can't believe _you_ asked _me _for forgiveness," she admitted, shaking her head. "If anyone should ask for forgiveness, it's me."

He gently took the notebook from her. "So… shall we just forgive one another, then?" he asked hopefully.

She looked at him. "Just like that?" she asked, incredulous.

He nodded. "Just like that."

She took a deep breath. Then she nodded. "Okay."

They sat awkwardly for a few moments, neither of them saying anything. Then Fiyero spoke up.

"This is ridiculous," he said. "We're both adults. We can talk normally to one another. We never had those weird, awkward silences we're having now."

"We also never had any fights," Elphaba said softly, lowering her eyes. "Things change."

"Not all things."

She looked back up at him.

"Fae…" He shifted a little and took one of her hands in his own, feeling that familiar shot of electricity shooting up his arm at her touch. Oz, how he had missed touching her. "I'm sorry," he said. "I am so, so sorry, about everything… but I know where I stand now. I love you. I never stopped loving you. And I love you because you're _you_, and not because you remind me of Aliyra, or for any other reason."

She averted her gaze. "I'm sorry, too," was all she said.

He exhaled slowly. "So…"

She fidgeted with the hem of her dress, clearly uncomfortable. "Yeah."

When she didn't say anything else, he inquired carefully, "And you…" He trailed off.

"Everything I sang in that song yesterday was true," she said, still refusing to look at him. "And what I said afterwards was true, too."

He remembered, of course.

"_Fae… do you still love me?"_

"_Do you even have to ask?"_

That was probably as clear an answer as he was going to get from her, he knew. She hated displaying her feelings for all to see. And especially now, to him, she wouldn't tell him what she was feeling. Not exactly. He had hurt her too much for that and she was afraid of getting hurt again.

He hated himself for that, knowing how much effort it had cost him to get close to her to begin with, but he was determined to fix it. He had to, and somehow, he would.

Suddenly, he couldn't take this awkward, stupid silence anymore and in a heartbeat, he made a decision. He pulled Elphaba to him and kissed her.

She tensed up in his arms for a moment. A long moment. A very, very long moment. Eventually he pulled away, only to find her staring at him with wide eyes.

"Sorry," he said, feeling like even more of a jerk than he had before. "I, um… I just had to do that, I guess."

"But…" She shook her head. "You and I, I mean… we… we broke up," she argued weakly.

"I love you," he said simply. "And I think you don't really hate me, either… do you?"

She opened and closed her mouth a few times. Then she lowered her eyes and muttered, "Of course I don't."

That giddiness returned and he couldn't keep a broad, excited grin off his face. It wasn't an 'I love you', but it was probably as close to it as he was going to get from her right now.

"So we broke up." He scooted closer to her and put his arm around her, drawing her closer. "And now we're getting back together."

"But –" she started protesting again, but he cut her off with another kiss. "Fiyero –" He kissed her again, effectively shutting her up. She struggled weakly, but when he tightened his grip around her, she gave up and kissed him back.

He grinned and pulled away for a moment to rest his forehead against hers. "You okay?"

She kissed him again in reply and he held her even closer, thanking every deity he knew that he had her back.

"Fiyero," she murmured between kisses, gasping for breath a little. "It's not so easy, you know."

"I know," he said before capturing her lips once more.

She tried to pull away. "We need to talk everything out."

"And we will." He brushed her cheek with his lips. "Just not right now."

"Mm." She already forgot what she had been about to say. "Okay."

He smiled and they kissed for a long time – soft, light kisses; nothing extreme, but somehow these kisses seemed more intense, seemed to hold more meaning, than any of their previous kisses ever had.

* * *

She went with him to his dorm room afterwards, but when he tried to kiss her again, she stopped him.

"I mean it, Fiyero," she said. "We need to talk about what happened."

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, sinking down onto the bed. "I know."

"I don't know if I can do this." Elphaba hugged her knees to her chest. "It wasn't really your fault, you know… it was mine. This was about more than Cedence, more than Aliyra, more even than just you and me… it was mostly about me being scared to mess everything up again, the way I always do." She sighed and blew a strand of raven hair away from her face. "I'm a walking disaster, Fiyero. You saw what happened. That could happen again. When I get scared, I just… close down and start looking for reasons to run away from what I'm feeling, and to make the fear go away… and in this case, that was by breaking up with you. I won't say the situation with Aliyra didn't bother me, because it did, more than I can say, but… but it wasn't really the _reason_. We could have worked it out – easily – if it weren't for me being a coward."

He shook his head and scooted closer to her. "Fae…" He put his arm around her tentatively. When she didn't pull away, he pulled her into his side. "I know you were scared, and I'm sorry. I should have seen that and I should have tried to help you through it. But I was so caught up in my own problems that I didn't see it. And even after you broke up with me, and… and when you came to Adurin Iir…" He grimaced. "I was a jerk. I was so mean to you, and I want you to know that I didn't mean any of those things. I'm really sorry."

"I know." She leant her head against his shoulder. "Me, too."

They sat in silence for a while. Fiyero started rubbing her shoulders and she sighed softly, leaning against him. Her muscles were so tense that he had to work hard to get them to relax and he smiled when her eyes fluttered shut.

"Yero?"

"Yeah?"

She opened her eyes to look at him. "You're not a jerk."

He chuckled softly and squeezed her shoulder. "You're not a liar. I knew that, I just…"

"I know." She looked down. "You're not a cheater, either. I know you were just upset and a little drunk, and that's why you kissed Cedence."

"And you're not a witch." He sighed and dropped his hands from her shoulders. "I'm so sorry I said that, Fae… I always promised myself that I would be the one person that would always love you for who you are, skin and sarcasm and magical powers and everything… and I do – love you for who you are, I mean – but I was just mad over everything and it slipped out, and I'll never forgive myself for that."

She snorted softly. "Don't be overdramatic."

"I'm not."

"You are." She sat up a little and looked at him. "What about the time I told you that you should just 'go back to dancing through life – or maybe you should try dancing through death, so that you can take Aliyra along'?" She used her fingers as quote marks. "If you're not going to forgive yourself for what you said, then I'm not going to forgive myself for what _I _said, because I said some pretty horrible things, too."

They fell back into silence. Fiyero resumed massaging her shoulders and she dropped her head back against his shoulder.

"Fae?" he whispered.

She didn't open her eyes. "Hmm?"

He pressed a kiss to her shoulder. "I love you."

She smiled, eyes still closed. She didn't say it back, though. He knew why that was, but he was determined to work everything out with her and make it right again. The way it had been before, only better. He would apologise a thousand times if he had to and he would do anything to get her to say it to him again.

He could wait for that. They were together again now, and that was all that mattered.

They had time.

"Fiyero?" Elphaba murmured. "I've been wanting to ask you something."

"Hmm?"

She turned her head to look at him, slightly puzzled. "Why is there a handprint on your cheek?"


	27. To mend a relationship

**AN: I really hate doing this, because there is most likely only one more chapter after this one, but I still have to leave it on hiatus... like, I'd love to update now, but I haven't actually written that final chapter yet :3.**

**I am leaving you with a very cute, nice, and fluffy chapter, though.**

* * *

**Chapter 27. To mend a relationship**

"You are back together?!" Galinda actually clapped her hands in delight, eyes shining as she bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. "For real?"

Elphaba grinned a little shyly at her friend and Fiyero squeezed her closer, beaming at the blonde. "We are."

Galinda flapped her arms and squealed, then threw her arms around both of her friends at the same time. "Oh, Elphie, Fiyero! I'm so happy for you! _Finally_!" She punched the air with her fist. "Operation Fiyeraba has succeeded!"

Upon seeing the blank looks her friends gave her, she giggled and waved them away. "Never mind." She tilted her head slightly to the side. "Now we need to work on Operation Bessa."

Elphaba sighed. "Nessa and Boq _still _haven't made up?" she asked in exasperation.

Galinda shook her head. "He wasn't chivalrous enough," she said, rolling her eyes as she quoted Nessarose, "and she is treating him like a servant."

"She kind of is," Fiyero muttered.

"She totally is," Elphaba agreed. "You all know how much I love Nessa, but even I can't deny the fact that she's terribly spoilt."

"They'll work things out," Fiyero assured Galinda. "They always do."

"That much is true," the blonde conceded. She looked at her friends. "So what's going to happen now?"

Elphaba shrugged. Fiyero just said, "We're going to work things out."

Galinda nodded firmly. "Good. Well, if you don't mind, I'm off to sleep now – I need a certain amount of sleep each night, you know, so that my skin…"

Both Elphaba and Fiyero zoned out after that.

As Galinda, still chattering, disappeared into the bathroom, Elphaba turned to face Fiyero.

"So… I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked her hopefully.

She nodded, fidgeting with the strap of her bag. "Breakfast?"

"Brunch," he corrected her. He leant forward to kiss her softly. "Come to my room around ten. I have plans."

A smirk made the corners of her mouth twitch. "The great and scandalacious Fiyero Tiggular has plans. That can't be good."

He playfully tapped her nose. "Be nice."

"Aren't I always?" Then she realised what she'd said and with a pang, she remembered everything she had said to him when they had been fighting. She looked away. "Okay, stupid question," she muttered. "Forget I said that."

His heart sank a little at that – it made him realise that they weren't there yet. They still had so much to work through… but they would. Together.

He caught her chin and turned her head back.

"I love you," he told her solemnly.

She rewarded him with a careful smile and he kissed her again. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay," she agreed softly. She watched as he walked down the hallway. Just before turning the corner, he looked back one more time and gave her a lopsided grin. He blew her a kiss.

She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

He grinned again and then left.

* * *

When she arrived at Fiyero's dorm room the next day and knocked on the door, he opened it for her with a beaming grin that nearly split his face in two.

"Close your eyes," he greeted her.

She raised one eyebrow.

He rolled his eyes and put his hands over her eyes, carefully leading her into the room. "Stay here. Don't look yet." He closed the door behind them and turned around, inspecting everything. Deciding it looked good, he grinned and said, "Okay, open your eyes."

She did.

The curtains were drawn shut, making the room completely dark if it weren't for the candles. There were candles everywhere – on the desk, the nightstand, the floor, every surface there was to be found in the room. He had pushed the couch aside and spread out a blanket in the middle of the room. There was a large basket with food, too – fruit, croissants, hot chocolate, juice, toast, even scrambled eggs.

She stared at it for a few long moments, then turned to stare at him. "You…" Her throat suddenly felt constricted and she sniffled. She just couldn't believe he had done all this… for her.

He smiled and took her hand, squeezing it softly. "Come on." He helped her sit down and then flopped down next to her, filling a mug with hot chocolate and handing it to her, then taking one himself. He clinked their mugs together.

"Here's to us," he said.

She took a sip of the hot liquid. Fiyero picked up a strawberry and dangled it in front of her face. She tried to grab it, but he pulled it away. "Not like that."

She scowled. "Fiyero, I _refuse _to let you feed me strawberries and make us look like one of those sickeningly sweet couples on the cover of Galinda's favourite romance novels," she warned him.

He pouted playfully. She snatched the strawberry from his fingers and ate it.

After a while, he pulled her into his arms. "Fae?" he whispered, his breath tickling the hair in her neck.

"Yeah?"

He paused for a moment, as if unsure of how to proceed. Then he nuzzled her cheek and whispered, "Are you happy?"

She started, unprepared for that question; and she tried to pull away, but Fiyero kept a firm grip on her.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to," he said. "And if you do answer, you can be honest with me, I promise."

She sighed and her shoulders slumped as she gave in.

"I don't know," she said, biting her lip. "I guess… I guess I never really thought about it. Have I ever really been happy?" She shrugged. "I don't really know." She looked at him. "But I'm happy we got back together," she confessed.

His eyes lit up. "Really?"

She laughed softly. "If I hadn't been happy about that, I wouldn't have done it, Fiyero."

He smiled and kissed her.

They spent the rest of the morning on that picnic blanket, slowly emptying the basket. When they had both had enough to eat, they put the food aside and they kissed for a long while, Fiyero slowly lowering Elphaba so that she was lying on her back on the blanket, with him hovering over her. He kissed her until he was dizzy, drunk on the feeling of finally having her in his arms again and kissing her.

After a while, she sat down between his legs, her back resting against his chest; and he pulled out the journal he had written. They went through it again, together this time.

'_She was my best friend. She wasn't like the other girls that came to Adurin Iir sometimes – the ones that were being trained to become ladies, the ones who only wanted to drink tea and play with dolls and who complained about their dresses and shoes getting dirty if we played in the gardens. Aliyra climbed trees and played tag with me. I challenged her to jump onto the pond once, promising her my dessert of the night if she'd do it, and she jumped without hesitating for even a clock-tick._

_I didn't start loving her until later on, when we both grew up and calmed down a little. We read together sometimes, or we would go out; but mostly we talked. About the future our parents had laid out for us, about… everything, really. She was so easy to talk to. Our first kiss was after we'd been out riding. We both smelt like horses and we were covered in mud, but it was the happiest moment in my life so far.'_

Fiyero grimaced a little. "I… I'm sorry about that," he said, looking down. "I mean… I didn't initially write this for you – mostly for myself. And I wanted you to read it because I thought it might help you understand things better – my feelings for her, and my feelings for you… but this is a little bit embarrassing. And probably kind of painful for you. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Elphaba shook her head. "I know how you felt about her, Fiyero," she said. "That doesn't bother me. Really. I understand you've known each other for a long time and you were in love with her. That wasn't what I was mad about before, either. It doesn't matter to me how you felt about her in the past, but it matters how you feel now."

"I will always love her," he said, and Elphaba nodded.

"I know."

"But I don't want to linger in the past," he continued. "She'll always have a place in my heart and I will never forget her, but I'm moving on. And I love _you_, Fae. Maybe even more than I ever did love Aliyra, because… well, with her, I kind of grew into it, you know? We were friends, we were engaged, and then it naturally became something more. She was my partner in crime and my best friend, but sometimes I wonder if we would ever have gotten together if our parents hadn't arranged our marriage."

Elphaba laid her head against his shoulder.

"It was different with you," he said softly, stroking her hair. "I won't say it was love at first sight, because you'll snort and roll your eyes…"

He chuckled when she did just that, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"But it was definitely _interest _at first sight," he said, eyes twinkling. "There was just something about you that drew me to you. And despite the walls you had up around yourself, despite the sarcasm and the fact that you tried to push me away, I just knew I wanted to get close to you somehow. I loved it when you finally let me in and allowed me to befriend you. I loved it even more when you let me in further, let me come that much closer… with Aliyra it was easy because we'd been friends for so long, and because she was just easy in general. She had been loved by people all her life, which made it very easy for her to love other people in return. With you… I had to work hard to get close to you, but somehow I just knew beforehand that it would be worth it. And I was right."

'_Her first symptoms were hardly noticeable. A cough, a rash, a headache. She got a fever at one point and we all thought that was it – just a case of the flu. Not pleasant, but not serious, either._

_But her fever didn't break and her symptoms didn't disappear – if anything, they got worse, and new ones were added every day. Dizziness, tingly sensations in her hands and feet, blurry vision. She started throwing up, too. Once a day at first, then twice, until she could hardly keep down any food at all and she lived off the small amounts of water the doctor made sure she took in. He said it was a rare disease, the name of which I forgot, but it was deadly and she would most likely not recover._

_I stayed with her a lot during that period. I gave her water and dabbed her forehead with a wet piece of cloth. I read to her, told her stories, even sang her lullabies; but she drifted further away from us every single day. She lost her sense of taste and smell. At some point she had started complaining about her hearing, that everything sounded as if she was under water. The doctor told us those were all symptoms – she was slowly losing the use of her senses, her muscle tissue, everything. Her entire body was deteriorating. She got worse and worse, losing weight and growing thinner and paler, her eyes sinking deeper into her face, every single day. She lost her vision and she could barely hear us anymore, but by then she was already so far gone that she was hardly even conscious anymore. She had feverish dreams, hallucinations. She thrashed and screamed, but she couldn't hear her own voice. It was awful._

_And then one day, about four months after her first symptoms had appeared, she just… left us. One moment she was there, and the other she wasn't. I wasn't with her when she died, but her mother was. She later told us that it had been rather peaceful – Aliyra had just stopped breathing, calmly passing away in her sleep. Until today, though, I am not sure if that is true or if her mother just said that to make me feel better. I was, after all, only eighteen, and I had just lost the girl I loved and was supposed to marry.'_

Elphaba wasn't surprised when she felt something wet in her neck. She turned to wrap her arms around Fiyero. He buried his face in her neck and cried, holding her tightly.

"It was just…" he choked out when he could talk again. "It was just so awful, you know? The way it happened, she…" He shuddered. "She didn't recognise us anymore. She yelled at her parents to get away from her and she didn't remember who I was. Every person was a stranger to her. I remember…" He swallowed. "I remember wishing at some point that she'd just… that she'd just go ahead and die…" New tears spilt over and he wiped them away. "…because then at least she wouldn't get even worse… she suffered so much, and all of us with her." He sniffled. "Even aside from my relationship with her… even if she had been a stranger, it would have been horrible to watch. But she wasn't a stranger, and…"

"Shh," Elphaba whispered, resting her chin on his shoulder. "It's okay. I understand."

They went through the rest of journal together, Elphaba asking any questions she had and Fiyero explaining and elaborating on things he wanted her to know about. It was getting dark by the time they finished, and Fiyero looked at Elphaba.

"Shall we go and get some dinner at the Primrose Café?" he suggested.

She agreed and they spent the rest of the evening there, talking and drinking coffee and tea, and holding hands.

Fiyero didn't ask if she wanted to stay over in his room that night and she didn't ask if she could, yet they somehow both ended up there again, wrapped around one another, kissing passionately. He pushed her down onto his bed and gave her a thorough back massage; and when he eventually flopped down next to her, ready to go to sleep, she snuggled up against him, her head pillowed on his chest.

He stroked her hair. "'Night, Fae," he whispered, pulling the blankets up around them and dropping a kiss on her brow.

She yawned and draped her arm across his stomach, pressing her cheek to his chest. "'Night, Yero."

She paused briefly. "Yero?"

He was already half-asleep, nuzzling her exotic-smelling, soft hair. "Mm?"

"I love you."

He was awake in an instant and he pressed a lingering kiss to her hair, his heart singing.

"I love you, too."

* * *

**Until after London! Bye!**


	28. Okay

**AN: Thank you all so much for reviewing! I'm back, I had an amazing time in London, and Wicked was wonderful as always - I really liked Kerry Ellis as Elphaba and Savannah Stevenson is just the perfect Glinda... same goes for Jeremy Taylor as Fiyero.**

**And the Wizard spat. Again. I think they cast Wizards on their spitting abilities (though he was very good). He should have been singing, "Waterfalls, I'm spitting waterfalls!"**

**Anyways, this is the final chapter of this story! I will finish _Days of summer _soon, but I'm already working on my next fic, so no hiatus this time ;).**

* * *

**Chapter 28. Okay**

"Hmm, Fiyero!" Galinda puckered her lips and made kissing and slurping noises. "Kiss me, Fiyero!"

Elphaba glared at her. "Are you done?"

"Kiss me too fiercely, hold me too tight!" Galinda sang – rather off-key – as she danced around the room, still making weird noises. "Ooh, Fiyero, I _love _you! Smack, smack, slurp…"

Elphaba's pillow hit her straight between the eyes and the blonde tumbled to the floor with a startled shriek.

Her roommate just cackled. "You had it coming."

"I was trying to teach you a lesson," Galinda protested as she sat up from the floor and tossed Elphaba's pillow back at the green girl. "The lesson that even though I love you and Fiyero being back together and I think you're incredibly cute, I do _not _want to come into a room to see you two making out on your bed."

Another pillow hit the blonde's head.

"And that," Elphaba said, smirking, "was me trying to teach _you _the lesson that normally, when you know your roommate's boyfriend is coming over and you get back from your shopping trip, you _knock_ before coming in."

"On the door of my own suite?!" She made a face. "And besides, knocking didn't help me much when I went to visit Nessa the other day. She and Boq didn't even notice me standing there, they were so busy sucking each other's faces off… though at least that means Operation Bessa succeeded."

Elphaba snorted. "Yes, because that took you a lot of effort," she teased. "You told me to tell Nessa to stop treating Boq like a servant, she apologised, he took her back. It's all thanks to you. You're so _wonderful_, Galinda."

The blonde tossed her hair. "I know!" Then she frowned at her roommate again. "Still, Elphie – I'm not knocking on the door of my own dorm room. That's silly."

Elphaba shrugged innocently. "You get to choose. You knock, or you see things you might not want to see."

Galinda's eyes lit up. "Things I might not want to see?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Not what you think."

"Really?" Galinda pouted. "Elphie, come on..."

"Nothing happened, Galinda."

"But the making out –"

"Was just that. Making out."

"But Fiyero had his shirt off."

"He'd have to have taken off more than just his shirt in order for the things that you have in mind to happen, Galinda."

"But –"

The blonde girl was interrupted by a knock on the door and Elphaba shot up. "Oh, no, would you look at that," she said in mock disappointment. "I have to go. And I was _so _enjoying our conversation." She waved sweetly at her roommate. "Bye, Galinda!" She quickly slipped out of the door and closed it behind her, breathing a sigh of relief.

Fiyero, who was on the other side of the door, raised an eyebrow at her.

"Don't ask," she said, linking her arm with his.

He chuckled and wrapped his arm around her. "I won't."

They went to the park behind campus together, where they sat down in the grass. It was autumn by now and slightly chilly, but neither of them really minded.

Elphaba leant back on her elbows and looked up at the blue sky, dotted with grey and white clouds. Fiyero planted a kiss on her throat. She put her head on his shoulder.

They didn't talk much. It was funny, Elphaba realised as she lay down on her back, still staring at the sky, that it seemed everything in their relationship so far had been about talking. Fiyero had first won her over by talking – a _lot_. If she were to believe him, he fell for her, too, because she'd been talking so much, that day with the Lion cub. They broke up because they hadn't talked enough – because he hadn't told her about Aliyra and she hadn't told him about the way she was feeling. And when they had gotten back together again, they'd spent a lot of time talking about everything. His journal, her childhood, Aliyra, Frexspar, their feelings and their relationship – they had talked endlessly about everything and they had promised each other no more secrets.

She'd been terrified to confess everything. She hadn't wanted him to know about the way her father treated her, or about her mother's death, or about… any of that, really. She'd been convinced that he would decide she was too much of a hassle and he couldn't be bothered anymore.

She had admitted that to him, too, right after she had told him everything and he – of course – had only kissed her hair and said he was glad she'd told him. He had just stared at her.

"I'm not sure which part I am more shocked about," he'd said. "The part where you think I would leave you again, the part where you think I would leave you because of your _family_, or the part where you think I could _ever _feel like you're too much of a hassle. If I hadn't wanted a hassle, I wouldn't have started dating you to begin with, Fae. I knew you were a commotion from the beginning, remember?" he had teased.

She'd just blushed and looked down. "I know… I feel really stupid right now."

"You're not stupid." He had kissed her temple, then grinned. "Not _really _stupid, anyway."

She'd shoved him off the bed.

He, in turn, had been hesitant to talk to her about Aliyra, because he was afraid she would feel as if he still loved Aliyra more than he did Elphaba, which was not true. He had recognised, though, that he would have to talk to his girlfriend about everything to avoid fights like the huge one they had in the future, and so he had. And she'd understood.

And now, now that they were closer than ever, they didn't feel the need to talk so much anymore. They could go entire afternoons like this, in each other's presence – reading or studying together, or kissing, or just cuddling – and barely say a word to one another. Galinda always complained that that was crazy – "Elphie, what is the fun in a relationship if you don't _talk_?! You talk about yourself, or your next date together, or about some present you'd really, really like to get and that he is then supposed to have gotten you the next time you see each other…" – but Elphaba couldn't say she minded. The silence was never awkward. Just comfortable. As if they didn't need words to know what the other was thinking.

Fiyero lay down beside her and nuzzled her temple. She turned her head to look into his eyes. He smiled and kissed her.

"I love you," he said.

She laced her fingers with his. "I love you, Yero."

He ran his hand down her arm, absently stroking it. She closed her eyes. They stayed like that for a long while, just lying next to each other.

Fiyero leant his forehead against her hair. "Fae?"

"Mm?"

He took a breath. "Are we… okay?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him. "I don't know. Are we?"

He could see the uncertainty in her eyes and he hastened to reassure her. "That's not what I meant." He reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "I just mean… I guess… are _you_ okay? Like, in our relationship? Is there anything that's bothering you, or anything you want to talk about, or…"

She cut him off with a kiss.

"I'm good," she said. "I think we're good."

He nodded. "That's good."

She chuckled. "You're ridiculous."

"That's why you love me," he said, giving her one of those lopsided grins of his, and she couldn't help but smile.

"It is," she agreed softly. "One of the reasons, anyway."

He kissed her deeply and she wrapped her arms around him, melting into the kiss. She squeaked when he suddenly lifted her off her feet and started carrying her across the park and back to campus.

He completely ignored her protests as he carried her into a building and then to the music room, where he gently placed her down on the piano bench.

"I wrote a few songs," he said earnestly. "You know, when we were… apart. Songs I really, really hoped I'd get to sing to you – or with you – one day."

He cleared his throat and started playing something on the piano.

"_Every breath you take_

_Every move you make_

_Every bond you break,_

_Every step you take_

_I'll be watching you._"

He stopped when he saw the look she was giving him and he grinned sheepishly. "Right. I guess that one is kind of stalker-ish, isn't it?"

"Just a little bit," she said, eyes twinkling with amusement, and he chuckled.

"The chorus goes, "_Oh can't you see you belong with me_…"," he said and she shuddered.

"Fiyero," she said sternly, "this isn't even romantic anymore. This is just creepy."

"I know." He shrugged. "I wrote this in the beginning. You know, when you were furious with me and I was just trying to get you back… I guess I was feeling a little stalker-ish back then." He shook his head. "I'll try a different one."

She laughed and watched as he rose to his feet and went to get one of the guitars from the corner. He fidgeted with the strings and then started playing, his fingers dancing across the instrument.

"_I could stay awake just to hear you breathing_

_Watch you smile when you are sleeping_

_When you're far away and dreaming_

_I could spend my life in this sweet surrender_

_I could stay lost in this moment forever_

_Every moment spent with you is a moment I treasure._"

He was singing with his eyes closed, but they snapped open when he heard her voice joining his in the chorus. She smiled widely at him and he saw that she had found the lyrics he had written down on one of the pieces of paper from his bag.

"_I don't want to close my eyes_

_I don't want to fall asleep_

'_Cause I'd miss you, baby_

_And I don't want to miss a thing_

'_Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream would never do_

_I'd still miss you, baby_

_And I don't want to miss a thing._"

She had figured out the chords quickly and was now trying to keep up on the piano, her eyes on him the entire time. He moved closer to her and sat down on the piano bench next to her, still playing the guitar, as he sang the second verse.

"_Lying close to you, feeling your heart beating_

_And I'm wondering what you're dreaming_

_Wondering if it's me you're seeing_

_Then I kiss your eyes and thank Oz we're together_

_And I just want to stay with you_

_In this moment forever, forever and ever…_"

Galinda heard the music when she was on her way to meet up with Shenshen and Milla, and she stopped to listen. Her face lit up when she realised whose voices she was hearing and she sneaked closer to the music room, trying to peer in through the window without either Elphaba or Fiyero seeing her.

There was no need worrying about that, though, she realised when she finally did look in. Elphaba and Fiyero were both sitting behind the piano, Elphie playing it and Fiyero playing the guitar he was holding; but they only had eyes for one another. The blonde doubted it whether they'd even notice if she flew in through the window in a bubble right now, completely naked, and started dancing on the piano – that's how caught up they seemed to be in one another and in their song.

They were both smiling and as Galinda listened to the lyrics of the song and then looked at her friends' faces, she knew that they meant every word they were singing.

"_I don't want to miss one smile_

_I don't want to miss one kiss_

_Well, I just want to be with you_

_Right here with you, just like this_

_I just want to hold you close_

_I feel your heart so close to mine_

_And just stay here in this moment_

_For the rest of time…_"

Fiyero pressed a kiss to Elphaba's hair and she laid her head on his shoulder.

"_Don't want to close my eyes_

_I don't want to fall asleep_

_I don't want to miss a thing_

_I don't want to miss a thing…_"

"Yero?" she whispered when the final tone had died away.

He put the guitar away and wrapped his arms around her instead. "Yeah?"

She looked up at him and he could see the smile in her eyes. "I think we're going to be okay."

He chuckled softly and drew her closer, kissing her forehead. "I think so, too, sweetheart," he said quietly, touching his forehead to hers before leaning down to kiss her lips. "I think so, too."

Galinda, still outside, had to wipe away a few tears, but she was smiling widely and her smile didn't vanish even as she walked the rest of the way to the café where she was supposed to meet her friends. She was just so happy that her friends were together again, and happy with one another… and she really did think that Elphie was right.

They would be okay.

* * *

**The song is _I Don't Want To Miss A Thing _by Aerosmith. I've been considering several songs, but this is one of the two that just scream "FIYERABA!" at me every time I hear them, and I wanted to use it somewhere, so...**

**Last but not least, you guys have to check out the one-shot _When I Was Your Man _by PocketSevens! He wrote it as a companion piece to this story and it takes place after Chapter 25, after Fiyero has given Elphaba his journal. It's absolutely brilliant ad you simply HAVE to go and read it. Now. Like, right now. Why are you still here, reading this? Go read that one-shot.**


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